His Real First Love
by x-evaXOXO
Summary: My red eyes moved from the ground, back to Shinji’s grey ones, and he leaned his face closer to mine. I took a breath, still gazing into his eyes, and finally. After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, I felt his soft lips against mine. ShinjiXOC
1. Chapter One: Meeting the Captain

Over 100 Years Ago, Soul Society

'Well…here I go…oh god this is bad; this is very bad. Ah I can't do this, where's my sister when I need her?' I let out a sigh, a sign that showed I was terrified out of my wits. I sighed alot when I was scared, nervous, or lost in thought. Right now it was a combination of the three, and I had no idea what I was going to do to calm myself down; I was in a bad situation. You might be slightly confused as to what I'm talking about, allow me to explain myself.

My name is Nagataka Choyo and I am (about to be) one of the many Shinigami in my family. The whole lot of my family have carried on the tradition of being a Shinigami for centauries, now it's my turn. No, my family isn't a noble family; we're more like nobles by association. My father is friends with all of the four noble families and somehow our family got sucked into the life of nobles. So I guess we're nobles in an unspoken kind of way. Anyhow, I graduated the Academy a few years back but have refrained from joining one of the Gotei 13 since my sister's been sick. She was born with a condition called lupus, that progressed as she got older. It destroyed her immune system and made her more susceptible to disease and infection; she's slowly dying of it. Her dream was to join the Gotei 13 and after years of taking care of her, I'm being forcedto join instead. I mean…I understand how important the Gotei 13 are to Soul Society, but I would have been perfectly content with taking care of my sister for the rest of my life. But my father has ordered that I join the Gotei 13, he says one of his children have to join. And since Miyo can't join because of her health, I have to in order to keep the family tradition going. God, I hate that man.

My sister helped me send out my applications to join one of the squads, she was so ecstatic about the whole thing that I wasn't going to ruin her fun. We ended up sending applications to each of the Gotei 13 to ensure that I got a spot. I didn't really care if I was seated or not, I didn't enjoy drawing attention to myself. I just hoped I'd be able to join one of the squads, as an unseated soldier, and lead a relatively normal life there. But of course that wasn't going to happen to me, my life couldn't be that simple. I ended up being placed in the fifth squad, as the seventh seat. Fantastic eh? My dreams had just flown out window. My sister flipped when she found out, she made sure to invite everyone our age to the manor for a party; she always had been the ostentatious one out of the two of us.

But moving on, I had about a week or so to prepare for my entrance into the fifth squad. Well…it wasn't really an extravagant type of entrance, it was merely me being introduced to my taicho, fukutaicho, and the rest of my squad. I'd been a little nervous that entire week and now that I was standing in-front of the door to the fifth squad barracks, I was absolutely terrified. Miyo would have been excited had it been her, bouncing around and dancing to her own beat…me not so much. Miyo and I are complete opposites when it comes to our personalities. I'm more quiet, shy around people I don't know, extremely nice, and I try to keep to myself whereas she's loud, confident, slightly obnoxious, and she's very social. It's not that I don't want to make friends, I'm just afraid to. When you get close to someone you form a bond with them, and I'm afraid of someone using that bond to hurt me. It'd happened a few times in my past, and now I'm trying not to get too close to anyone. Hopefully people here would be different then people from the Academy, I could only hope.

Another difference from my sister and myself is our looks. My sister has dark pink hair that hangs a few inches above her shoulders, with her bangs pushed off to the side slightly covering one of her golden eyes. She's taller than I am, standing at a height of 5'7. She has an athletic figure, with her curves in all the right places (that are slightly over- developed for her age). She has ivory colored skin, but it's a tad darkish for ivory if you ask me. She's the more girly one in the family, wearing some type of kimono almost everyday, and the more attractive one out of the two of us. She's actually engaged to a noble at this moment.

Me, I have white hair that hangs half way down my back. My bangs hang slightly infront of my red eyes but not enough to make me look like a sheepdog. I'm 5'3 ½, shorter than my sister by almost four inches, and the shortest person in my family. I'm not really proud of my figure, I wish I was athletically built like Miyo but I'm not. I'm not fat or anything, but I don't have an _overly_ womanly figure. I guess my shape is just right for my height, my curves are all compatible with my body type so that's a plus. At least I'm _slightly_ attractive compared to my sister. I'm slightly pale though, having porcelain colored skin with white hair kinda sucks. I'm not as girly as my sister is, I don't like wearing dressy kimonos so I just wear something comfy like skinny jeans and a cute top.

Now that I've explained a little about myself you might understand why I'm so nervous about joining my squad, makes sense now right? I would hope so since I've just spilled my guts out about myself. You might be thinking, wow…why are you so nervous if you got seventh seat? You must be powerful, right? Or do you not have shikai or something? The answer is yes, I have obtained my shikai and I've been told I'm pretty tough. But I'm just a naturally nervous person; going into a new environment scares me shitless. Meeting new people, scares me shitless. And not knowing what's going to happen around these people in this new environment, scares me shitless. So now that you know why I'm terrified, lets focus on my current situation.

I took a deep breath, knowing I couldn't avoid entering my captain's office forever and quickly adjusted my shinigami uniform. I was wearing the standard uniform called a shihakushō. This consists of a white kosode, a black kimono and hakama, and a white obi sash. I added my own personal touch to it by altering the uniform to fit my own style, I don't like wearing baggy clothing so I'd actually altered the uniform itself. The kimono top and sleeves were sewed to where they were tight fitting. The sleeves go halfway up the back of my hand and have a sort of loop in the material that goes around my middle finger so the sleeves won't ride up. My top itself is off shoulders and the white kosode is sewed under the black kimono giving it a bit of a layered look. To be honest my top it just a top, it doesn't have the little easy opening in the front that other uniforms have. In my alterations I'd transformed the kimono into a plain top, but it has a little bit of a baby doll style shirt (try thinking of Nemu's dress without the belt). Pretty cool huh? The hakama pants are still slightly baggy but they're not as bad as they originally were. I still have the white obi sash around my waist but it has some awesome black designs on it now. All in all I'd added my own personality to my uniform, and my father had went nuts over it. Miyo had loved it, saying that adding your personality to something was the best thing to do. I appreciated her support, not caring if my captain got pissed at the fact I had altered my uniform. It was _my_ uniform after all.

After making sure my entire outfit was presentable looking, I slowly slid the door open. I peaked inside and my jaw dropped; there was no one inside. 'Great, just great. He/she isn't here. Now what do I do?' I thought back to what my father had told me about meeting my captain. 'If he/she isn't here, then I enter and sit down infront of his/her desk. And I patiently wait for him/her to arrive.' I let out an exasperated sigh and stepped inside my captain's office. I slid the door shut and took a seat infront of his/her desk. I licked my lips, trying to keep my mind occupied with something other than how nervous I was, and looked around the office without really looking at it. Eventually, I got tired of sitting and walked over to the window. I stared upward, watching the clouds slowly scoot their way across the sky. It was all so calming, and now that I thought about it maybe there wasn't any reason to be nervous. That is…until I heard voices coming from outside the door.

"Sousuke I want you to finish up those reports and…" I quickly turned, ignoring the rest of whatever this person was saying, and ran back to my seat infront of the captain's desk. I plopped down, quickly pushed my hair infront of my breasts, and put my hands in my lap. I licked my lips in anticipation and almost cringed hearing the door slide open. "Now get-" He stopped talking and my mind went completely blank…what was I supposed to do again? 'Oh god, oh god, oh god! I forgot what to do…smart Cho, real smart.'

"Ano…can we help you?" a second voice asked. I stood up and turned to face two men, both with curious expressions on their faces. One had short brown hair, in a shaggy type of style. He wore glasses infront of his brown eyes and seemed to be very rehearsed for some reason. I was getting a bad aura from this guy, but I tried not to think on it. He had a badge on his arm so he was apparently the fukutaicho of this squad. The other man had long blonde hair with bangs and hazel colored eyes. I was getting a very laid back kid of aura from him, as well as some other feeling in my stomach. What was it? I mentally hit my emotions realizing what was going on in the subconscious part of my mind and looked to see he was wearing a white haor; that was something a captain wore. 'So…he's my captain then?'

"Hi…ano…I'm Nagataka Choyo." I said, more like mumbled. 'Great, now I'm coming off as embarrassed…fantastic.' "This is the fifth squad, right?" 'And now I'm coming off as stupid, I already knew the answer too! I just need to keep my mouth shut.'

"Yes, it is." the fukutaicho said "Taicho, I forgot to mention our new seventh seat was arriving today." He nodded, rolling his eyes at his fukutaicho, and gave me a big smile.

"I'm Hirako Shinji, taicho of the fifth squad." I nodded, my cheeks felt warm. 'Damn it, am I blushing? Oh shit.' "What was your name again?"

"Nagataka Choyo." I repeated. Hirako nodded stepping forward, his hand outstretched. I smiled, taking his hand. It felt nice holding his hand, it made me feel comfortable…was that supposed to happen?

_**No, not at all. It's different for you dear one.**_

"Welcome to the fifth squad, Choyo." he said shaking my hand. I felt my blush heat up, now it probably _was _noticeable.

"I'd prefer if you called me Cho." I mumbled. His grin widened, if that was at all possible, and he nodded.

"Kay, Sousuke aren't ya gonna welcome her to the squad." he barked, finally letting go of my hand.

"Gomen taicho, welcome to the fifth squad Nagataka-san. I'm Aizen Sousuke, fukutaicho of the fifth squad." Aizen said, quickly introducing himself. I managed to smile through my blush

"Arigato Aizen-san." I said. I watched Hirako…I mean Shinji, walked around to his desk and take his seat. I couldn't help but feel slightly awkward standing there, I really had no idea what I was supposed to do. 'God…imagine if I had come here straight after the Academy. Now that would've been intimidating.'

"Sousuke get ta working on those reports." Shinji ordered

"Hai, Hirako-taicho." Aizen said, sitting at his desk.

"Cho, go on an' sit down. Don't be so nervous." I nodded, still blushing, and sat back down infront of his desk. Was me being nervous _that _noticeable?

_**Well of course it is, your face is practically screaming it. I mean, have you seen your blush?**_

He pulled out a file, I was guessing it was mine, and skimmed through it.

"It says here you graduated the Academy a good two and a half years ago. Third top of the class in marks, kido second top of the class, hand to hand fourth, and swordsmanship second." Shinji stated, I nodded. He looked up from my file at me. "But you've refrained from sending out an application until this month?"

"Hai taicho, my sister has lupus." I explained "I've been taking care of her since I graduated, so I didn't have time to join the Gotei 13." He nodded slightly, closing my file. Was he worried I wasn't going to be committed to his squad or something. "She has her own caretaker now so I decided I'd send out my applications since I have time to commit to the Gotei 13." I added. He nodded again, glancing at Aizen, before his gaze returned to me. I stared into his eyes for a few seconds before lowering them in embarrassment. 'Well that sure was noticeable, but I felt so at easy there for a second.'

_**Of course the aftereffects of staring in someone's eyes isn't awkward in the least.**_

"Keep working on those reports Sousuke, I'm gonna introduce Cho to the rest of the squad." Shinji said standing up. I quickly followed his example and looked over towards Aizen.

"Hai taicho, nice meeting you Nagataka-san. If you need help with anything don't hesitate to ask me." Aizen said with a genuine smile, it seemed rather forced if you ask me. I nodded, smiling a little bit.

"Arigato Aizen-fukutaicho." I said. Shinji sighed boredly and headed towards the door. He slid the door open and looked back at me. I followed behind him, crossing my arms over my chest, another thing I did when I was nervous. He exited the room, and I quickly followed him out. He slid the door shut and looked down at me. 'Great, he's taller than I am. How fantastic is this?' I felt my blush spread across my cheeks again and lowered my eyes to the wooden floor.

"Why're ya so nervous Cho?" Shinji inquired. I glanced up through my bangs and pressed my two index fingers together. I twiddled my fingers saying

"I'm just the nervous type." I mumbled. He shook his head, slightly amused, and placed his arm around my shoulders. I felt my blush darken, and he led me off towards the fifth squad's training grounds.

"There's no need for it." Shinji said "Everyone's been a newbie at one point, it's natural to not have a clue what yer doin." I nodded and bit down on my lower lip, another habit of mine. "Just don't be intimidated."

"Ha ha, that's not possible for me at all." I said, holding my right arm with my left hand "I don't know anyone."

"Now that's a lie." Shinji said. I looked over at him confused and he grinned. "Ya know me dontcha?" I giggled slightly and nodded. "Then there's no need at be afraid." I smiled to myself and nodded again.

"Arigato taicho." He smiled a sincere smile, and I glanced down blushing…again. God what was wrong with me today? I normally never blushed this much.

_**Someone's got a crush!**_

_Shut up, damn it._

He removed his arm from my shoulders and opened the door to the training grounds. He let out a sigh and walked on in. I quickly followed behind him and he shouted

"Alright listen up!" Everyone stopped what they were doing and a silence fell across the grounds. 'Great…this means I'm going to be the center of attention.' "I'd like ya'll to meet our new seventh seat, Nagataka Choyo." Shinji glanced back at me hiding behind him and rolled his eyes. "Stop that." He grabbed my arm and gently pulled me to stand in front of him. I glanced up at all the curious faces and quickly lowered my eyes. 'Scratch that, _this_ is way more embarrassing than meeting just the taicho and fukutaicho.' "I expect you lot ta help her out since this is her first day." I glanced up to see nodding from some of the stronger looking Shinigami, I was guessing they were like the more experienced in the squad; their seats were probably the lower numbered ones. "Cho." I turned to face Shinji and he smiled apologetically. "I have ta go to a meeting with all the taichos, so I'm afraid I won't be able ta help ya with yer training for a while. Stop by my office later and let me know how this lot treated ya." I nodded and bowed my head in respect.

"Of course taicho, arigato." I glanced up through my lashes and his grin widened. He turned on his heel and head out of the training grounds without another word. I took a deep breath and turned to face my squad.

"So let's see if you're really seventh seat material." a voice said 'Well…here goes nothing.'

Thanks for reading, reviews would be nice. Let me know if I kept Aizen and Shinji in character and advice on how to improve the story would be a plus =]


	2. Chapter Two: Lying Can Cause A Flashback

"Ha ha, wow. She's so precious." I giggled to myself, lowering my head in slight embarrassment.

"I've gotta agree, but I think she's not just adorable. She's pretty sexy as well."

"Aw, look how much she's blushing!"

"It's only her first day, stop teasing her you asses!"

"Why don't you make us Hina!" I scratched my head in thought and raised one of my eyebrows.

'Do they always fight this much? I wonder…' I let a sigh escape my lips and looked around at the seated officers surrounding me. We were currently taking a break from the grounds and were sitting inside one of the training rooms. After a nice long training outside, we came inside to cool off and get something to drink. The guys had started teasing me and Hina…well she was getting pissed off with them. That seemed to be a normal thing though.

I looked to my left, there sat Nobu Emori third seat in the fifth squad. His hair was black and cut short with a messy sort of look to it. His eyes were blue and he had a tattoo of a yellow & green snake going up his left arm. Emori was the more quiet one out of the men, but that still didn't mean his opinion was sugar coated. He had so far been rather blunt with me on my "cuteness" and how adorable I was. It was rather nice, knowing that a guy thought I was cute. My sister was always the one that got the compliments so it was a nice change.

Sitting next to Emori was Musashi Taiga, fifth seat of the fifth squad. He had brown hair tied back into a low ponytail that stopped a few inches below his shoulders and his eyes were a pale green color. He looked the oldest out of the men, it might have been the stubble around his chin that gave me that idea. Taiga had a diagonal scar running from his left cheek to his left ear, but despite the scar he had a very happy personality. He was the loudest out of the men and seemed pretty enthusiastic about everything. It was nice having an optimistic type of person to talk to.

On my right sat Haruhide Hina, fourth seat of the fifth squad. Her hair was bright red and fell about four inches below her shoulders. Had it been straight it would have been longer, but she looked gorgeous with the natural ringlet curls. Her eyes were brown, chocolate brown to be exact. Hina's smile was beautiful, and her laugh was like some type of song. She reminded me of my sister by the way she talked. She was also very defensive, protecting me from the guy's jokes. She refused to let them walk all over me, but she was really funny and carefree when she wanted to be.

And last but not least Norio Okito, sixth seat of the fifth squad. His hair was a dark green color, cut up above his shoulders in a emo type of style. His eyes were a duller brown then Hina's, a copper color perhaps. He was wearing a top like hat on his head, black with pinstripes. Okito was especially flirty but helpful non the less. When I'd been training with them he'd give me suggestions and ways I could improve my fighting technique. He also pointed out some of the mistakes I'd made and openings I'd missed when fighting. It kind of pissed me off a bit because it was like he was acting better than I was, but I tried my best to ignore the feeling. He was pretty hot tempered too, he kind of reminded me of one of my cousins in a way.

But all in all they were really nice to me and didn't immediately judge me like most people would. My red eyes scare people, I don't really know why though. But any-who, they'd actually been the only people to approach me after Shinji had left; everyone else was just avoiding me. Hopefully the other people in my squad didn't think I had the plague or something…I wondered if they acted like that towards every new member of the squad. I needed to ask now, I hoped everyone didn't think I wasn't worth welcoming or something.

"Ano…Haruhide-san." I mumbled

"How many times today have I asked you to call me Hina?" she snapped playfully, looking over at me. I grimaced and chewed on my lower lip in thought.

"Ano…a bunch." I guessed

"Exactly." she said rolling her eyes. "Don't make me ask you again." I giggled with a nod and twiddled my fingers.

"Gomen." I apologized. She nodded and titled her head slightly.

"It's fine, but did you have a question about something?" she asked, getting back on topic. I nodded saying

"Does the rest of the squad…always avoid a new member?" Hina let out a sigh and twirled a strand of her hair around her index finger. I guessed she was trying to think of a way to say it nicely or explain how the squad's minds worked.

"They're a bunch of pussys, they always do that to a new seated member." I looked over at Okito, and he through a smile in my direction. "Don't take it personally."

"Demo-"

"Trust us sweetie." Emori said putting an arm around my shoulders "They're not worth it." I looked at him, still partly confused.

"To be dead honest, they're all just pissed because they got pushed down a seat." Hina said, I moved my eyes to her. She walked over to the window saying "That's why they're avoiding talking to you." She plopped down on the window sill, staring out the window towards the clouds. "Jealous assholes." Taiga nodded in agreement.

"If you had entered without a seat they would've been overly nice, smothering you with attention, and not given you a moment to breathe let alone think. It's better this way." Taiga assured. I nodded, still not entirely sure what to do about all this, and Hina said

"I'm also wondering if it's because of how close Hirako-taicho was to you." She glanced up at the ceiling in thought.

_**Heh heh, most likely.**_

"Nani?" I asked confused "What do you mean?"

_**Are you that thick headed?**_

_Fuck you, shut up_

"He seemed to be more involved with you then he is with other members." Taiga observed "He usually never touches anyone." I looked at them confused, why would he be like that? He seemed like a really friendly person. "Well…except when he and Hiyori-fukutaicho are having their little fights." He chuckled to himself, and I tilted my head to the side curiously.

"He barely touched me though, and it was only for a second." I said "Just to pull me out from hiding."

"Normally he'd just tell the person hiding behind him to stop hiding and introduce themselves." Emori said "But he even introduced you…you don't know him or something, do you?"

"Ano-"

"_What'd you think you were doing, standing up on that wall?" I lowered my head, letting my bangs fall in front of my face. Getting scolded was something I didn't really enjoy, especially when it was from my father. I shuffled my feet on the ground, crossing my arms in-front of my body. "Well?"_

"_I was trying to get off the grounds." I mumbled._

"_Why?" he asked, he didn't really even sound like he wanted to know the answer._

"_I wanted to go into the village." I replied_

"_For?" he asked…again. What was this? Twenty questions or something? I sighed to myself and said_

"_Because I just wanted to go make some friends."_

"_You already have friends." he stated_

"_But they're all a bunch of nobles." I whined. I glanced up through my bangs to see my father slap his hand to his forehead. Apparently he was getting annoyed with me…eh that wasn't all that surprising. I wasn't really the type of child that had good listening skills, I was too rebellious for my own good. And I was only seven years old, how awesome was I?_

"_Why didn't you just ask one of the servants to go with you?" he inquired, he sounded kind of frustrated with me. I guessed he was trying to hurry up with the conversation, he probably had some type of meeting going on soon._

"_Because they wouldn't have taken me off the grounds like I wanted. They would've went to ask you first, and then you would've said no. Using the excuse that it's not fair to Miyo…as usual." I snapped angrily. He glared at me, and I quickly bowed my head. Little did he know it was more out of fear then respect. "Gomen Otou-san." I heard him sigh, and I chanced glancing up at him. He was shaking his head, muttering something to himself. It sounded something like 'Why me? Why was I cursed with such a disobedient daughter?' Well that really helped boost my self confidence…NOT!_

"_Next time, ask one of your body guards rather than one of the servants." he said. I quickly nodded when he looked at me, and he turned to face the Shinigami taicho standing a few feet away from us. "Now go thank the taicho for helping you." I nodded, taking a few steps across the grounds, and the taicho looked at me with a curious expression. I walked a little further, stopping in-front of him. I crossed my arms, pouting a bit, and unwillingly said_

"_Arigato for getting me off the wall." I glanced up to see the blonde captain chuckling to himself. He didn't seem to be laughing at me, it was about something he was thinking about more than likely…why wasn't he laughing at me?_

"_No problem kid." He ruffled my hair, and I pouted to myself. I was acting like such a spoiled brat, but I had really wanted off the grounds. I hated being cooped up all the time. He bent down until he was level with me and said "Yer lucky I didn't mention ya falling off."_

"_Don't." I said quickly. My father would literally kill me and never let me off the grounds again if he found out about that. He grinned and shook his head amused. I was guessing I had a look of horror on my face or something like that. Why did adults find it funny that they could scare us kids shitless?_

"_I won't, what's yer name again kid?"_

"_Nagataka Choyo." I replied "What's your name?" He chuckled, ruffling my hair again._

"_Taichi of the fifth squad, Hirako Shinji." I nodded, feeling my cheeks go warm. "Be more careful next time Choyo-chan."_

"_It's Cho." I informed him. I hated the name Choyo, just plain Cho meant butterfly. I thought it was really pretty all on its own. Shinji grinned again, pushing himself up from his crouching position._

"_I'll remember it." I giggled to myself, and he lightly shoved me back towards my father._

"_Arigato again Hirako-taicho." my father said shaking his hand. Shinji nodded, glancing towards me. He quickly through a smile in my direction and looked back towards my father saying_

"_Eh, it's no prob. Kids will be kids." He shrugged to himself and father said_

"_If there's anything you'd like-"_

"_Don't worry 'bout it." Shinji interrupted "You just promise me yer not gonna do somethin' stupid like that again." He was looking straight at me, I couldn't do anything but promise. That look he was giving me…I couldn't say no._

"_I promise." I mumbled. His grin widened, and he turned heading off the grounds._

"_Nice meeting ya' Nagataka-sama." he shouted, raising a hand up. 'Hirako Shinji huh? I think I wanna be in his squad…'_

"Not that I know of." I lied, scratching my head

_**Tsk, tsk you little liar. How could you lie to your new friends on your first day?**_

_Damn it, will you just shut up already?_

"Maybe I just look familiar to him or something." I said, ignoring my Zanpakuto's thoughts. Hina shrugged to herself and said

"Perhaps, the taicho's pretty different from the others." What did she mean exactly?

"Nani-"

"Hina-chan all the taicho's are different; none are the same." Okito interrupted, laying back on the floor. He stared up at the ceiling boredly, and I moved my gaze to my Zanpakuto sitting in my lap. Why was she being so annoying today?

"This peace is rather nice, it's definitely effecting the taichos." Taiga observed, I glanced up at him curiously. "I hope it lasts for a while."

"You never know." Emori said with a shrug "I'd like at least another ten years, all the taicho's are so laid-back nowadays." I listened, absorbing all the new information they were telling me. So all the taichos were all laid-back to a certain degree, this peace was certainly something everyone was thoroughly enjoying. I probably could have gotten away with not joining the Gotei 13 for a good number of years, maybe even a decade if I was lucky. But I wasn't going to complain, I'd made some pretty stellar friends in the few hours I'd been here.

"Hey, Cho. You listening to me?"

"Nani?" I shouted, snapping out of my daze. The room went quiet for a moment, before everyone burst into laughter.

"Goodness Cho, take it easy." Hina said amused

"Have fun spacing?" Okito asked. I felt my cheeks go warm, and Emori pulled me closer to him in a hug.

"Aw stop teasing her, have you seen how red her face is?" They all laughed, and I hid my face in his kimono top. Today was definitely going to be a long day.


	3. Chapter Three: Kurisutaru

'Maybe…I should knock this time? To make sure he's here. And that would mean if no- one answers, I won't just be walking into an empty room. That'd be pretty stupid, especially if he walked in five seconds later or something. I won't go barging in like some idiot who has no idea what they're doing…again.' I let out a sigh of boredom, absentmindedly scratching my head. Now that training was over I had to talk to Hirako-taicho, I mean Shinji, about my first day here. I'd been planning to ask Hina if he always had his new members tell him about their first day, but I'd forgotten until after she'd left with the others. By everything they'd told me I was starting to feel like he was treating differently then other new members…and I hadn't even spent half an hour with him!

_**Of course he's treating you differently. He knows you doll.**_

_Barely._

_**That doesn't mean a thing, he still has history with you.**_

_A very small history._

_**It's still worth something, you're so negative.**_

_He freakin' caught me when I fell off the wall!_

_**So?**_

I groaned loudly, rolling my eyes to myself. I was getting so annoyed with her, why couldn't she just shut up already? I closed my eyes, focusing on entering my inner world. 'Focus, focus, focus.' I felt a slight pull and slowly opened my eyes. 'Well, looks like I'm here…again.' I moved my eyes up from the area I was standing on and looked to my right.

"Heh, took you long enough." I felt my eyes narrow at her obnoxious tone.

"Is there some reason you've felt the need to comment on everything referring to my taicho?" I asked with an acidic tone.

"Ha ha, of course. What fun is it keeping your opinions to yourself?" she asked, why did she even ask rhetorical questions? I felt her reiatsu behind me, and I slowly turned to face my Zanpakuto; she grinned. I never did understand why she looked the way she did, wasn't your inner Zanpakuto supposed to look like what your own Zanpakuto represented? It was an extension of yourself after all, I didn't think I ever would understand it.

She had porcelain colored skin like myself, but it was so much whiter. Almost transparent like, I didn't think someone's skin could be so white. Her hair was a fiery red color with orange and blonde streaks all throughout it, and her hair fell to the bottom of her back. It had a layered and razored look to it, so she didn't have as much even though her hair was insanely long. Her eyes were a charcoal color though, and that's what really scared me when I was talking with her. Just staring into those emotionless pits always gave me the heebee jeebees. Her outfit was something I really couldn't explain, when she would move a certain way all sorts of colors would flash across her outfit. Like when sun hit the glass of a door or something. It left a rainbow of colors sitting on your wall…that's how her outfit's colors were. Her outfit itself was a tight fitting kimono reaching mid-thigh length and some knee high boots that had the same color thing going on. The only basic color she had was her black fishnet leggings, and she had a black bow planted on the left side of her head.

"Is there anything in particular you want, Kurisutaru (crystal)?" I asked coldly. Her grin widened and she jumped over me, sitting down on one of the ledge like structures. She crossed her legs and said

"Goodness me, someone's rather snippety today." she teased, I glared. She was such an obnoxious bitch, her personality was complete opposite of mine. How did that even work out? She was supposed to be an extension of myself, not my complete opposite. My luck was fantastic huh? Maybe it was just the inner Kurisutaru that was this way, the sword Kurisutaru got along with me just fine. We worked great together, maybe I'd just have to force this bitch to become part of Kurisutaru rather than Kurisutaru becoming a part of _her_.

"Just get to the point damn it." I snapped. She raised her eyebrows amused and said

"Alright already, sorry doll." I wrinkled my nose, I was getting really pissed off with her. "It's just that taicho of yours has been on your mind all day, it's been making me rather curious." she said with a smirk

"And that's why you've been commenting on everything?" I asked, slightly frustrated. She rolled her eyes.

"Psht no, I just wanted to piss you off is all." she said like it was no big deal. I deepened my glare and said

"Oh that's all huh?" I wrinkled my nose and she grinned.

"Well…not exactly." she said

"Then what is it, damn it." I raged, she giggled.

"Wow, someone's got something shoved up their ass." she teased; I took a slow breath, trying to stay calm. "Watch that Aizen guy."

"Now you're giving me orders?" I asked annoyed

"Not orders, advice." she said sincerely "I'm getting a bad vibe from him, I don't trust him. Just be careful." I nodded, knowing she really was trying to be serious for once. I really did appreciate her when she was trying to get along with me. "I'm thinking he's bad news."

"Arigato Kurisutaru." She nodded and a grin spread across her face. 'Oh god, what's she thinking now?'

"I also would like to tell you that you should make a move on that taicho of yours. He's pretty fine." she said amused; I glared at her.

"Whatever." I focused for a second and felt the same pull as earlier. I opened my eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. Listening to her all the time was getting way too annoying for my taste. 'God, how do I manage to put up with her?'

_**Because you know I give awesome advice.**_

_Did I ask you? Nope._

_**You know you'd be lost without me.**_

I rolled my eyes, ignoring her as best I could. I didn't understand why she couldn't just keep her thoughts to herself and leave me alone. I let out a sigh of frustration and lightly knocked on the door.

"Come on in." I felt my lips stretch into a smile hearing Shinji's voice.

_**Like I said before, you should make a move.**_

I shook my head of Kurisutaru's voice and slid the door open. I peaked inside and Shinji looked up from his desk, hearing the door open.

"Cho, come in." he said with a big smile. I felt my cheeks heat up but entered non the less. I slid the door shut behind me and took the seat in-front of his desk. I pushed my hair over my shoulders before twirling a strand around my finger.

"Konnichiwa Hirako-taicho." I said quietly

"And you're nervous again." he noted. I felt my cheeks burn hotter; I shrugged.

"Ano…that's how I am." I said, repeating my thoughts from earlier. I heard him let out a sigh, and I mentally panicked. 'Holy shit, is he already getting tired of me? I haven't spent even half an hour with him today…oh god.'

_**It's your own fault dear one, you need to get over your shyness. Men don't like that, it annoys them shitless.**_

"Ya need at get over it. Ya can't be nervous goin' inta battle." Shinji said; I glanced up through my bangs. "Try holding yer head up when ya speak, that's a start." I nodded and forced myself to make eye contact with him. "I'm not the type ta want my squad ta change who they are, but ya really need ta have confidence in yerself. It's important to have for battle." I nodded, understanding where he was coming from.

"Arigato for the advice, Hirako-taicho." I said, forcing myself to keep eye contact. He nodded and smiled again.

"No prob Cho. Now, how was yer first day?" he asked still grinning "Did everyone play nice?" I giggled, nodding.

"Everyone was really nice." I said, lying for the rest of my squad. He gave me a look that told me he wasn't buying my story, was I that bad at lying?

"Who all helped ya with yer training?" he asked

"Ano…Hina, Emori, Taiga, and Okito." I replied "They were all really helpful." He nodded, he didn't seem all that surprised. Did he know the rest of the squad avoided me? And if he did…how would he know? According to everything Hina had said, the squad had avoided new members in the past. Maybe…he knew from those past experiences. But I wasn't going to think on it too much, I wanted to get to know more about Shinji. "How was your meeting taicho?" He chuckled.

"Eh, it was a meeting. Nothing too special." I nodded, attempting to occupy my thoughts with my hair twirling. "Yadomaru Lisa was promoted to fukutaicho for Kyoraku-taicho. We were having the welcoming ceremony." he explained "Speaking of fukutaichos, where the hell's Sousuke?" I looked around the office quickly and shrugged, I hadn't seen him since this morning. I was pretty curious about this guy though, he seemed like he was hiding something. With me having a natural curiosity about everything, I was definitely going to find out what it was. Plus, I enjoyed being a nosy person. "He better have finished those reports on time." Shinji shook his head sighing to himself.

"Taicho?"

"Hm?" He looked at me curiously, and I felt my cheeks heating up again. 'Ah great, I really need to stop blushing so much.'

"Ano…how long has Aizen-san been your fukutaicho?" I asked, tilting my head to the side

"A while." he said plainly, I nodded. He didn't sound all that pleased talking about Aizen, maybe it would be best if I changed the subject. But what else could I talk about? This was supposed to just be a meeting between taicho and subordinate, not between friends. God, I couldn't think of anything else to say that wouldn't be personal. "Anyhow, you wanna go get somethin' ta eat?" I looked at him slightly shocked, he wanted to have dinner with me? He was smiling, but it was a different smile. It was extremely genuine, and I really liked it. "I like getting ta know my squad so-"

"I'd love to." I interrupted. He chuckled and stood up from his seat. I followed suit, and we walked out of his office together.

"Is there anywhere in particular ya'd like ta go?" he asked, I shook my head.

"As long as I can get sake I'm good." I replied, he laughed.

"Ha, I like a girl that can drink. Let's get goin'." I nodded, and with a big smile on my face I followed him out of the room. Today was getting so much better then I'd ever imagined it could be.


	4. Chapter Four: Dango and Sake

I giggled to myself, but my giggle didn't really last that long before it turned into a full out laugh. I clutched my stomach, still laughing, and glanced over at Shinji sitting beside me. He was chuckling to himself about something or another. I was guessing that he was laughing at me though, I'd been drinking ALOT of sake. I laughed a little longer before I made myself calm down, I couldn't eat while laughing after all. I took a quick bite of my dango and looked back at Shinji.

"That was amazing, how'd he manage to do that face plant?" I asked, taking a _small_ sip of sake. Shinji shrugged, saying

"Eh, who knows. He was lucky I saved his ass."

"Cause that hollow would've ate him alive?" I guessed. Shinji nodded, chuckling a little bit. Memories could be so much fun to relive, other times they weren't.

"So how'd yer first hollow excursion go?" he asked, taking a drink out of his glass

"Oh my goodness, you wouldn't believe it." I said laughing "Everyone was going crazy, they were all about to piss their pants." I tipped the sake bottle slightly and frowned realizing we were out. "HELLO? Can someone get us more sake!?" I shouted. I rolled my eyes, setting the bottle down, and leaned my cheek against my hand, my elbow resting against the table. "Bakas." He laughed in amusement.

"Ya know, that's the third bottle we've got tonight." Shinji stated. I looked over at the bottle, tilting my head a bit.

"Is it really? Wow…eh I like to drink. What can I say?" Shinji laughed, and I felt my lips curved into a smile.

"Yer so different when yer drinkin'." he observed "Ya don't seem as uptight." I nodded in agreement.

"Living a life around nobles can make ya that way sometimes." I said "Arigato." I grabbed the sake bottle from the waitress and filled my glass. I handed the bottle to Shinji, and he smiled gratefully. "I'm gonna have such a hangover in the morning." _That_ really made him laugh.

"Then why the hell are ya drinkin' so much Cho?" he asked amused

_**Cuz it's easier to make a move on someone when they're drinking.**_

_Will you keep your mouth shut for once?_

"Because…I'm trying to relax." I stated, he rolled his eyes.

"I think ya just want me ta pay a huge bill." he said sarcastically. My mouth dropped in shock, but it was also fake shock mind you.

"Hirako-taicho, how could you believe something like that? I would _never _want you to pay an enormous bill." I teased, he shoved me slightly. I pouted to myself, and he chuckled again.

"I guess I'll believe ya, fer now." I raised an eyebrow, for now huh?

"Oh, so you don't think you can trust me at all?" I asked, he quickly shook his head.

"No Cho, that's not it. I'm just teasin' ya." he explained. I made an 'oh' face and nodded to myself.

"Ano…ok." He threw one of his rare genuine smiles my way, and I felt my cheeks heat up again. 'Oh shit, isn't this great?'

_**Now's the time to make your move!**_

_I already said I wasn't going to make a move, Jesus Christ Kurisutaru._

_**I'm just trying to help you be happy.**_

_Yeah right, you just want me to embarrass myself, since he'd turn me down._

_**Now that's a lie, he wouldn't turn you down.**_

_And why is that?_

_**Because you're absolutely adorable, that's why.**_

_Kurisutaru, please just shut up._

_**Ok ok, fine. Since you said please.**_

_Arigato._

_**No problem deary.**_

_Weren't you supposed to be quiet?_

_**Perhaps…**_

_Kurisutaru!_

_**Gah, fine already. You're no fun at all.**_

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and smiled to myself when Shinji ordered some more dango for us.

"What're ya smiling' for?" he teased; I wrinkled my nose playfully.

"You ordered more dango." I giggled, he rolled his eyes. "Arigato taicho. No one's ever treated me to this much food and sake before."

"I could imagine why; yer quite the drinker." he stated grinning

"Ha ha, well people don't normally take me out to drink." I said playing with a strand of my hair. He looked at me with a look that showed I'd sparked his interest, did he really want to know about me? "Oka-san's always said a lady shouldn't drink so much, I enjoy drinking a little _too_ much."

"So she doesn't consider ya a lady then?" he asked

"Psht, no." I replied, doing the little preppy hand thing "I used to sneak out all the time when I went to the Academy with the few guy friends I had, we'd always go out drinking. Oka-san was always pissed when she'd find out about it. That's how I actually learnt to hold my liquor, if you pass out you get raped. Easy enough to understand." He looked at me slightly shocked, and I giggled. "Not that any of them tried to rape me, they just let me know what could happen if I passed out with none of my friends around to take care of me." He nodded, his eyes shown with relief. Was he actually worried that I might've been raped? Wow…it was interesting that he cared so much.

_**Told you it's because he likes you!**_

_Will you shut your fuckin' mouth?_

"They used to hafta put their money together to pay for the lot of us though." I said reminiscing. I poured some more sake in my glass realizing it was empty and took a huge drink; it tasted so yummy. "They'd be so pissed at me because I'd be the one to drink enough to run them all out of cash." Shinji got a horrified look on his face and checked the money he had. "Taicho, no. Please tell me you didn't go over how much-"

"Nah, I'm just kiddin." he joked laughing. I stuck my tongue out, dang was I acting childish. The plus side to it was that he laughed though, maybe we did have some type of connection besides the subordinate-taicho one. "Money's no big deal though, I've had fun hangin' out with ya." I smiled, and my jaw dropped when the waitress handed him two more bottles of sake.

"Yay! You are an awesome taicho." I cheered. He rolled his eyes saying

"Yer not gettin' a whole bottle to yerself." I pouted.

"Demo-"

"Ah, no." I crossed my arms still pouting. "Ya can't have a huge hang over in the morning, it's gonna be bad enough with how much ya drank already." he said handing me my dango. I nodded gratefully, but still didn't think it was fair. I wanted a whole bottle all to myself.

"I can hold my liquor though. My hangover's aren't that bad." I lied.

"I recall ya saying 'I'm gonna have a huge hangover in the morning'." I felt my cheeks heat up, did he really remember everything we'd talked about? I glanced down at the table and took a bite of my dango, hearing

"HIYAAAAAAA!" Shinji went down like a rock, a blonde girl's sandal recently having assaulted his face.

"GAH! Nani Hiyori?" Shinji shouted, I inched away slightly confused. What the hell was going on? Who was this chick…and why had she just attacked my taicho?

'Hiyori…that names sounds familiar. Who was it that mentioned that name today? OH! She's the fukutaicho that Taiga mentioned. Something about her and Shinji always fighting, and he only really makes physical contact with her _because_ they're fighting. Or something like that.'

"I just haven't attacked ya yet today." the blonde, Hiyori, said grinning. Shinji held his, now, bloody nose; a glare set on his face.

"Why ya little-"

"Ano…taicho?" I mumbled. He glanced at me, and I shyly handed him a napkin.

"Arigato Cho." He gratefully took the napkin, trying to stop the blood from protruding from his nose. "Hiyori you wait-"

"For?" she asked, not really caring. She looked away from Shinji and turned her attention to me. "I'm Hiyori by the way, Sarugaki Hiyori; fuku-taicho of the twelfth squad." I smiled slightly.

"Nagataka Choyo, seventh seat of the fifth squad." I replied. She nodded, her pigtails bouncing slightly. She was shorter than I was so I was slightly thankful I wouldn't be the shortest person in the Gotei 13. She even had her fukutaicho badge rapped on her arm, signifying her authority. She seemed pretty tough even though she seemed young. She still had that look that she wasn't to be messed with or she'd kick your ass.

"So yer his new seventh seat, Aizen mentioned something about that earlier this week." Hiyori said boredly

"Sousuke mentioned it ta you?" Shinji asked, sounding shocked. Hiyori nodded, not really paying attention to Shinji, and looked back over her shoulder.

"Kensei, Love; he's over here." she said, beckoning two men over. Both of them were wearing white haori's, so they were obviously taicho's of one squad or another. One had short grey hair and had a muscular build to him. He had a serious expression on his face and seemed like he was quite mature. The other taicho was African American, wearing sunglasses and he had a huge afro. He seemed quite calm and laidback, which wasn't a bad thing mind you.

"Shinji, you go out for sake and don't invite us?"

"Gomen Love." Shinji said boredly. Love nodded, taking a seat across Shinji. The other taicho, who I was guessing was Kensei, sat beside Love.

"Arigato Hiyori." Kensei said, looking at the fukutaicho. She nodded, putting her hands behind her head.

"Eh whatever, I'm gonna go see Lisa. Later." Hiyori said walking off.

"Pass the sake." Love ordered. Shinji handed him one of the bottles and Kensei said

"We're sorry for interrupting your…ano-"

"Dinner." Shinji interrupted "This is my seventh seat Nagataka Choyo. Cho, meet Love Aikawa; taicho of the seventh squad. And this is Muguruma Kensei; taicho of the ninth squad."

"Nice to meet you Choyo." Kensei said, stretching his hand across the table. I smiled, taking his hand.

"Please call me Cho." He nodded, and I quickly shook Love's hand as well.

'Well this isn't going to be awkward in the least. I'm finally getting to know my taicho, and now two more show up. This is just my luck.'

_**Well if you're so upset about it, leave.**_

_That might just be the best thing to do, I don't want things to be awkward._

_**No, I was being sarcastic. You can't leave!**_

_Watch me._

I finally woke myself up from my spacing out, realizing the taicho's were discussing something. Then there was the pause that I needed.

"Ano, Hirako-taicho?" Shinji looked from Love, who had just finished talking, to me. "Arigato for buying me dinner, but I should probably be heading home. My sister will kill me if I'm not there to tell her everything about my day." Shinji nodded and said

"Well I guess I'll see ya in the morning then Cho." He smiled, and I felt my cheeks go hot again. Why was he able to make me blush so easily?

_**Cause you like him.**_

"You'll be able ta make it home safe, right?" he asked, was he concerned about me?

"Hai taicho, I am a seventh seat after all." He rolled his eyes amused and said

"Even a seventh seat can be clumsy when they're drunk." I wrinkled my nose.

"Well it's a good thing I know how to hold my liquor then." I said. For the first time in a long while, I'd actually sounded slightly cocky when I'd said that. Shinji smirked and said

"Get goin'." I nodded, quickly got up, and head out the door.

_**He thought you'd do a face-plant but you surprised him, fer sure.**_

_Good thing I'm awesome then._

I sighed to myself and walked down the street towards the manor. God, I hated going home.

**Author's Note: Ok, let me know if I kept Shinji in character in this chapter. It made me rather fidgety writing it, I was so worried about making him OOC. Let me know what you thought of it, please review.** _Destinies Can Change_ **will be updated next. If you haven't read it, please check it out. I'm sure you won't be dissapointed. It's UlquiorraXOC incase you didn't know. Again, thanks for reading and please review. =]**


	5. Chapter Five: Sisterly Advice

"So how was your first day?" I glanced at Miyo standing in my doorway, before a horrified expression came on my face.

"Miyo, what are you wearing?" I asked shocked. She look down at her short blue nightdress and shrugged.

"My clothes for bed." she replied nonchalantly. I darted over to her and quickly draped a blanket around her shoulders. "Cho, stop it."

"What were you thinking?" I asked worried "You could catch a cold." She rolled her eyes and let out a sigh.

"You're over-reacting." she said boredly, I glared slightly.

"If I don't worry then who will? Not you, obviously." I said taking her arm. I led/dragged her to my bed. I forced her to sit down and covered her legs with the bedsheets.

"Cho!" she whined

"This is your own fault for not wearing some pants to bed and a long sleeved top." I explained, she groaned.

"Demo-"

"Nope, not listening." I interrupted. She 'humphed' in annoyance and crossed her arms. Miyo shook her head slightly, her pink hair was pulled into low pigtails so it didn't move all that much. She moved her side-bangs out of her eye before her golden eyes found my red ones. Her eyes told me that she was really tired, she always had a long day being cooped up in the house. Not being able to do anything to get her energy out always led her to being extremely tired by the end of the day. Why was she forcing herself to stay awake like this? She needed to get some sleep.

"Well, can you at least tell me how your day was?" she asked annoyed, apparently that was why she was forcing herself to stay awake. I walked back to my dresser, a small smile on my lips.

"It was great, my taicho took me out to dinner." I told her, she gasped.

"Like a date?" she asked excitedly

_**See even your sister can tell.**_

"No, not a date." I disagreed

_**You little liar, it was totally a date.**_

_No it wasn't, it was a dinner between subordinate and taicho._

_**Sure sure, keep telling yourself that.**_

I rolled my eyes to myself and heard Miyo sigh.

"So it wasn't a date?" I shook my head, running my brush through my long white hair. "Then what was it?"

"A simple dinner between subordinate and taicho." I explained. She made a clicking noise with her tongue, not believing me in the least.

"Eh, you'll be dating him within the month." she said boredly, I turned to face her confused.

"And how do you figure that?" I asked. She smirked slightly and pulled her hair out of the hair-bands. She flipped her head upside down, running her fingers through it, before she flipped it back up again. She looked at mischievously and said

"Well, you're absolutely precious. You could get any guy you wanted. You just really need to do some FLIRTING!" I rolled my eyes at her explanation, she always thought flirting was the answer to everything.

"Miyo, when I'm interested in a guy I promise to let you know." I swore "My taicho is a different story, I don't like him in a romantic way."

_**There you go lying to your sister now, you're on a roll today hun.**_

_Will you shut your god damn mouth?_

She let out a sigh and fell back against my pillows. I turned to face my dresser and set my hairbrush down boredly. I looked up into the mirror, my reflection staring right back me. I could tell my cheeks were a pink color, but normally when I looked in the mirror I felt so incomplete. Now I was looking at myself, feeling whole for the first time in a while. I shook off the thought and searched through the drawers, looking for a nightdress. Just vaguely talking about Shinji, or even thinking about him for that matter, made me blush. He was so-

"Did you at least make a friend?" Miyo asked, interrupting my thoughts. I nodded, pulling out a black nightdress.

"Four to be precise." I gloated. I looked at her over my shoulder, and her jaw dropped.

"Wow sis, you're on a roll. Making four friends in one day is a record for you." she teased. I lowered my eyes, slightly hurt by her words. "Oh Cho-chan, gomen. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, I was just kidding." I nodded.

"I know Miyo, it's fine." I said, trying not to let it bother me. Miyo lowered her head, trying to come up with something else to talk about I guessed. The thing with me was, I made friends very slowly. People didn't really approach me because of my eyes, and with me being really quiet that didn't help people to get to know me. The most friends I'd ever made in one day was two, and that was only because I'd _literally_ bumped into them at the Academy.

"So, what's these friends of yours like?" she asked curiously, trying to lighten the mood. I smiled slightly and said

"They're all really great. Hina reminds me of you a ton, she's really protective of me." Miyo smiled, twirling a strand of her hair around a finger.

"Well, at least I know there's someone to defend you there." she said grinning. I giggled when she made a face at me and turned my back to her. I quickly pulled off my top and glanced back at Miyo hearing "What are the others like? You can't just stop telling me about your friends, it makes me nosy." I giggled to myself and slipped my pants off.

"Ano…Okito's really helpful. He taught me a bunch about openings I have when I'm attacking or defending myself. He even made suggestions on how I could improve my skills, he's sixth seat by the way." I explained. Miyo nodded, staring up at the ceiling. I quickly slipped my nightdress on and ran over to my bed. I jumped up on my bed beside her, and she quickly turned her attention back to me. "Taiga was really optimistic and happy go lucky. But sorta loud." Miyo laughed at that one.

"Like me?" she asked amused

"A bit." I admitted. "But he's awesome, just like you." She shook her head amused before assuming a lazy position with her hands behind her head.

"And what about this last person?" she inquired

"Emori…" I stopped and felt my cheeks heating up.

"Ooooh, who's this Emori guy?" she asked teasingly "You're blushing like mad." I felt my cheeks burn hotter and turned on my side, facing away from her. "Tell me!" she demanded poking my side. I giggled and said

"He's just a friend, but he's really…flirty I guess."

"How so? Give me details."

"He's just really blunt on how cute he thinks I am, and he makes alot of physical contact." I explained, not really thinking about how wrong the last part sounded.

"Choyo!" she screeched

"Not that!" I whined turning over and shoving her. She laughed loudly and clutched her sides. I felt myself blushing and covered half my face with my hands. "He just holds me whenever he gets the chance or finds some reason to touch my arm."

"He likes you darling." Miyo sang, I rolled my eyes.

"I doubt that, I'm not that pretty." Miyo scowled at me, pursing her lips.

"Nagataka Choyo, that's a lie and you know it." she scolded. Here came a speech, why hadn't I just kept my mouth shut?

_**Because you're modest and it pisses your sissy off to no end.**_

_Will you be quiet?_

_**Why would I do that?**_

_Because you have nothing to do with me and my sister's disagreements._

_**That doesn't mean I still can't side with someone, and I'm definitely siding with Miyo on this one.**_

_Kurisutaru!_

_**Sorry sweetheart but sissy's right. Can't deny that one.**_

_I can if I try really hard._

_**Stop trying to be modest damn it! It's not hard, I'll teach you right now. I AM SEXY AS FUCK! Your turn.**_

_That wasn't be un-modest, that was being conceited._

_**Conceited, un-modest. Same thing.**_

_Is not!_

_**What ever, just try it. Say you're pretty.**_

_Fine, I'm pretty._

_**Didn't that make you feel better about yourself?**_

_No._

_**And why not?**_

_I feel like I'm being conceited._

_**Well stop it, cause you're not.**_

"Cho, even if you aren't drop dead sexy like some people…"

_Great, now she's talking about herself._

_**Or she could be talking about me.**_

"That doesn't mean that you're not attractive. Plenty of people have a more reserved kind of attraction. Like you, you have an innocent type of beauty. You're gorgeous in the sense that you're beautiful. Me on the other hand, I have a different type of beauty then you have." Miyo went on. I nodded, showing her that I was listening, even though I really wasn't. I'd heard this speech a good dozen times, I could probably recite it on my own. "Everyone is different when it comes to how attractive they are, whether it be an inner attraction or an outer attraction. Some people-"

"Miyo, I'm not trying to sound rude or anything but I've heard this speech before." I interrupted. She let out a sigh of frustration and took the blanket off her shoulders. She slid out from under the covers and off my bed. She stood and headed towards the door.

"Then, for once, think about what I've told you." she whispered without looking back. She slipped out of my room, shutting the door behind her. I let a sigh escape my lips and quickly got under the covers of my bed. I stared up at my ceiling for a moment, thinking about what Miyo had said. Even though I didn't want to admit it, she was right. I did have an innocent type of beauty, and I even had an inner beauty. Maybe I should have listened to her more often when she was giving me those types of speeches, she was older and far more experienced when it came to men. Maybe I should take her advice and try to figure out if Shinji liked me, either that or find out if Emori liked me. Ha ha, yeah right. Like either of them would like me and like I would be brave enough to try to find out. Then again…ah what was I thinking? Men were too confusing for their own good, if either of them liked me then they'd have to tell me. Cause I sure as hell wasn't going to tell them anything.

**Author's Note: Alrightly, so I'm sorry this chapter wasn't really the most exciting. But I felt the need to introduce you all to Cho's sister. I promise the next chapter will be pretty darn amazing, there's gonna be a little bit of Aizen's true colors showing so be excited. I'll be updating **_Destinies Can Change _**next so you'll be waiting maybe two-four days on this one to update next. Check out** _Destinies Can Change_**, I'm sure you won't be dissapointed by it. Yeah, the beginning's rather slow but the UlquiorraXOC will deffinitely make up for it in the end. Thanks for reading =] **


	6. Chapter Six: A Slip Of The Glasses

"Come on in." I smiled to myself before sliding open the door to Shinij's office. He looked up from what looked like paper work and grinned seeing it was me. "Konnichiwa Cho."

"Konnichiwa Hirako-taicho." I said, still smiling. I took a few steps into the room and brought my hands from behind my back. "Ano…I finished the paperwork you assigned to me."

"Arigato Cho." I walked across his office and placed the paperwork on his desk, slightly away from what he was currently working on. "I didn't wanna hafta assign ya so much paperwork ta do, but I'm so behind on it all." he complained. I giggled, forcing myself to keep eye contact with him.

"It's no big deal taicho, I don't really mind." I said, blushing a little. He raised an eyebrow slightly and smirked.

"Of course ya don't. Everyone loves paperwork huh?" he asked sarcastically, I giggled quietly.

"Ok. It isn't the most exciting job, but it gives me a break from training. I'm tired of getting my butt kicked." I explained. He looked like he was going to ask something, but he shut his mouth and looked around me hearing a knock at the door.

_Well isn't this perfect timing?_

_**Want me ta beat em' up?**_

_No, it's fine Kurisutaru. It's probably something important._

"Come in." Shinji didn't sound all that pleased. Aizen walked in and gave me a perplexed look. What was it any of his business if I was in the taicho's office, he needed to mind his own business.

_**You got that right chicky.**_

_What's his problem?_

_**No clue, he's prolly jealous he doesn't have an adorable girl like you at his beck and call.**_

_He probably never will, he's too creepy._

_**You sure you don't want me kicking his ass?**_

_Yeah, I'm sure…Hirako-taicho wouldn't appreciate it._

_**And why not?**_

_Because he'd be bedridden when you were done with him, then Hirako-taicho couldn't load him down with paperwork._

_**Ah, smart; I like this Shinji guy.**_

"Pardon my intrusion Hirako-taicho demo 16th seat Jinya Kunimi wishes to speak with you about a transfer to squad eight." Aizen explained "She's waiting outside." Shinji nodded, letting out a sigh. He looked at me and smiled one of his genuine smiles.

"Gomen Cho." he apologized

"No, don't apologize." I asked of him "Being taicho requires you to give up your time for others, it's no big deal at all." He continued giving me that same charming smile before saying

"I'll see ya later." I nodded, bowed slightly, and walked out of the office. Aizen actually followed me out, that was weird; I thought with him being the fukutaicho he'd stay to hear the final decision made with the transfer. I ignored him and walked down the hall thinking about these five months that I'd been in the fifth squad, it had definitely been an amazing time.

Hina and I were the best of friends, we'd bonded to the point that I considered her an older sister. We went out shopping together all the time, and she told me about all her guy problems. She was just like my sister was in the aspect, always talking about a guy she thought was attractive. She always had a boyfriend, it was such a site to see her with a different guy almost every week. Hopefully she'd be like my sister and find one to stick with, but until then I'd listen to her talk about the boys. Then there was the gossip, boy did she love to gossip about everything. There were so many things I'd learned about people in the Gotei 13 just from listening to her gossiping.

Okito had become that best guy friend every girl has, we weren't all that close on an emotional level but instead we were always goofing off and having fun. We pulled pranks on as many people as we could, and usually we ended up getting caught by someone other than Shinji. The few times that Shinji had caught us though, he hadn't been angry. Instead, he'd joined in the fun and helped us complete our pranking mission. It was awesome. Okito was also the one that helped me the most with my training, my skills had improved a great amount because of all the advice he'd given me. I had yet to beat him at a fight though, hopefully I'd get strong enough to beat him one day.

Taiga was like an older brother to me, he was rather protective of me and verbally attacked any guy that so much as glanced at me. He most likely would have physically attacked them if he wouldn't be loaded down with paperwork for it. It was a good feeling knowing that someone saw me as their little sister, but it could be so annoying at times. Taiga was great, don't get me wrong, but he needed to chill. He really over did the whole 'I need to protect my little sister' thing. We had so much fun hanging out though, he even took me out drinking when I was all uptight about my parents pushing me to be involved in the lives of nobles.

Then there was Emori, god this guy was confusing the shit out of me. I didn't know what he wanted from me half the time, but Hina was always yelling at him to stop hitting on me so I was guessing he liked me or something. I never did understand the concept of flirting though, when guys flirt I mean. Some of them try to hide that they like a girl by being a complete asshole and others are just overly nice. Emori was extremely nice, helpful as he could be, and he was always trying to find some reason to hug me. I liked getting the attention at times, but at others it was slightly annoying. I would eventually tell him I didn't have romantic feelings for him, but I didn't know how to do that without breaking his heart; I guess I'd learn eventually.

Lastly there was my taicho, Shinji. He was amazing, just completely amazing. The time I spent with him seemed to go by all too fast, and the way I felt after we spent time together was just an amazing feeling. I could still feel how I felt so calm and at ease staring into his eyes, or what it felt like when he would shove me. It felt like his arms were only made to go around me or his hands were only made to hold mine. Just…everything about him screamed that he was made just for me. Shaking his hand, feeling his arm go around my shoulders, even his height. It all seemed like we were meant to be…now if he just felt the same way everything would be perfect. But nothing normally worked out that way. No matter what.

Besides everything about him being perfect for me, we spent a good amount of time together. No, not every day. Now that would definitely scream that I was a stalker or something...even though I knew I wasn't. But he would randomly show up when I was walking around the fifth squads barracks/Seireitei or getting ready to go home, and he'd invite me out to dinner. But we'd do more than just go out to eat, sometimes we'd go walk around talking, go training, and just recently he'd invited me to watch the fireworks festival with him in a couple days. I was extremely excited about that, and to make sure he wouldn't be busy next month I was going to invite him (as well as some other taichos and fukutaichos, I didn't want to seem too suspicious) to my sister's wedding. Her wedding rehearsal was actually two days after the fireworks festival so I needed to finish up getting the invites made so I could pass them out. Hopefully everything would work out perfectly.

"Nagataka-san!" I snapped out of my daze, hearing someone say my name, and looked over my shoulder to see Aizen come running over to me.

_**Urg great, what does that douche want?**_

_I guess I'll find out._

"Aizen-fukutaicho." I acknowledged. "Did you need something?" He stopped beside me and said

"I would like to apologize for interrupting your meeting with Hirako-taicho." I tilted my head to the side slightly.

"It's no big deal, really." I said, smiling a bit "I was just turning in some paperwork, and what you had to report was far more important than mere paperwork."

_**God, why are you so forgiving?**_

_Because that's how I am, ok? I'm not a complete bitch like you Kurisutaru._

_**Humph, being a bitch has perks though. People don't mess with me.**_

_Uh huh._

_**Are you even listening to what I'm saying?**_

_Not really._

_**Heh, wow I'm surprised. You can be a bitch when you want too. Try it out on Aizen!**_

_Just because I don't like him, doesn't mean I'm going to be a bitch to him for no reason._

_**But it's not for no reason, he interrupted your meeting with Shinji!**_

_Kurisutaru, I swear I will be a bitch to him the first time I get probable cause. Until then, I'm going to be civil._

_**Jesus, you're no fun at all.**_

"I suppose. I wouldn't have come at that moment had I known Hirako-taicho was speaking with you." Aizen said. I rolled my eyes and let out a sigh.

"Aizen-fukutaicho, I've already told you it's no big deal. Please don't make me repeat myself." I asked sweetly. Aizen nodded and smiled at me. I felt really creeped out by it even though it seemed like a nice enough gesture, I didn't feel all that comfortable. Did he need something else, because he wasn't leaving. What did I have to say to make him go away? "Is there anything else you wanted to talk about?"

"I was wondering if I could help you with your training?" he asked sincerely. Now you might be like, say yes! He's the fukutaicho, he'd be able to help you out a whole bunch with your techniques. But I didn't feel comfortable around him at all, especially with letting him see my techniques. He seemed so rehearsed, like everything was planned out, and he always acted a certain way. Usually I was never this paranoid about someone, but something about this guy just didn't seem right.

"I think I'll pass." I said kindly "Arigato for the thought though, maybe we can train together another time." He seemed slightly annoyed that I'd said no, he said

"Is there a particular reason why?"

"Ano…I promised Emori that I'd train with him today." I said timidly

_**Oh no, he did not just scare my little girl!**_

_Little girl? When did I-_

_**I'm so gonna kick his scrawny ass!**_

_Kurisutaru!_

_**He's gonna be begging for death when I'm done with him!**_

_Kurisutaru calm down._

Aizen stared right down into my eyes, and I shrunk back slightly terrified. He could be extremely intimidating when he wanted to be, it seemed like he wasn't really even trying though. And that's what really scared me, imagine if he was _actually_ trying. He moved his face slightly closer to mine, inclining it downward since I was shorter than him, and his glasses slipped down his nose slightly.

His eyes, they'd seemed to change to a liquid golden color from their normal brown. Gold found red, a menacing gold. I felt my breath catch in my throat, my heart seemed to stop beating in my chest. What was this feeling, this feeling of terror? It was on a whole other level than normal terror, I'd never felt so weak in my entire life. His eyes penetrating through me, as if he knew everything about me. I quiet whimper escaped my throat, and I managed to stumbled backward a few steps; I'd made it away from him and his powerful reiatsu. His reiatsu seemed like it'd been crushing me, suffocating me, draining away all my strength.

"That's fine Nagataka-san." he said, a smile coming to his lips. He stood straight again, pushing his glasses back up his nose. "Another time then." He turned on his heel and headed down the hallway. I felt my legs give way underneath me and dropped to the floor. I sat there for a good three minutes, before I managed to force myself back on my feet.

_Kurisutaru, I'm terrified._

She stayed silent for a moment before saying

_**You're not the only one dear.**_

_I never thought…_

_**Me either, get to the indoor training room now.**_

I nodded to myself, agreeing with her, and clumsily walked down the hallway. I gulped, thinking about those eyes of his; they were so scary. No wonder he wore those glasses, they managed to hide his true eyes and the evil in them. I didn't understand his motive though, he wouldn't have let his glasses slip like that around just anyone; they would've seen what I just had. What interest did he have in me? And his advance, getting that close to me. He wouldn't have done that to anyone…but me? I hadn't been here for six months, how'd he form an interest in me that quickly? I'd barely spoken to him, let alone spent time with him. We hadn't even trained together, he had yet to see my Zanpakuto's abilities. What was he planning? I needed to know but at the same time, I didn't. I wanted to stay as far away from Aizen as I could, but I knew I couldn't. I had to figure out what was going on, and I knew that only I could do it.

_**Cho, what are you thinking? That man is dangerous.**_

_I know that, but if he's willing to get that close to me then that means I'm the only one that's capable of figuring this out._

_**Demo-**_

_Kurisutaru, let me handle this. I'll take your advice every step of the way, I promise._

_**Fine, I'm not letting you dig your own grave though.**_

I nodded, thanking her for her support. I knew I couldn't do this alone, and Kurisutaru was the perfect person to help me out. I couldn't let anyone know about my new found plans, not even my friends here at the Gotei 13. I wasn't going to involve them in this, as long as they were safe I would be fine on my own. 'Aizen Sousuke, you better watch your back cause my Zanpakuto might just wind up lodged in it.'

**Author's Note: God what a creeper Aizen is. Let me know if I kept him in evil character mode, it was a little hard writing so I'd like to know if I did a good job on it. Let me know what you thought about the chapter, all reveiws are welcome. Constructive critism, flames, anything really. I decided I really wanted to put this chapter up before working on** _Destinies Can Change. _**Next update will be a couple of days, check out my UlquiorraXOC fanfiction if you have the time, I'd really appreciate it.**

**SHINJI RULES!**


	7. Chapter Seven: Dream of the Past

"_Alright children, once we enter Seireitei we have to stick together understand?" _

_I looked around at my classmates, who were all nodding in acknowledgement to our sensei. Currently we were standing outside Seireitei, in a small group. We were all around the age of ten, so we had a slightly cocky attitude and thought we could get away with doing anything…or maybe that was just me. Our sensei was taking us on a little excursion so we would know what it would be like to be a Shinigami, and what the life was like inside of the Gotei 13. We weren't supposed to be able to enter the Shinigami Academy until we were at least thirteen years old but with all of us being the children of nobles (most of us anyway), they had made a special exception. It was completely hypocritical if you asked me, everyone always bowed down to the nobles. For once I would love it if someone said no to them, I would've even been content if someone had told me no since I basically was a noble. Nobles needed to know that they couldn't always get their way, someone really needed to put them in their place._

"_Welcome to Seireitei." a Shinigami said to our sensei, once we'd reached the entrance. She smiled at him and said_

"_Arigato gosaimasu. Could you perhaps tell me which squad is closest?" I rolled my eyes at her incompetence and looked up at the clouds. _

'_Wow, they all look so pretty. They're very interesting shapes today, unique as usual.'_

"_Cho-chan." I looked over at my sister's best friend and smiled._

"_Hai?"_

"_How's Miyo-chan doing? I haven't seen at her at the Academy for a while." she said. I nodded, knowing she was just as worried as I was about Miyo's health._

"_She's doing ok I guess, she's sick right now though. Hopefully it doesn't get worse than just her coughing and sneezing." I said, crossing my arms over my chest. She nodded and said_

"_Any clue when she's coming back to the Academy?" I shrugged and said_

"_Maybe sometime next week, depending on her cold." She nodded, and I heard the sensei say_

"_Alright class, follow me. We'll be visiting the thirteenth squad first." I rolled my eyes, I didn't want to go visiting every single freakin' squad. I wanted to see one squad and one squad alone, the fifth squad. Ever since Taicho Hirako Shinji had saved me from making a mega face-plant on the sidewalk outside my home, I'd been rather interested in him. I guess I had a bit of a crush on him, but I was just a little girl. It wasn't like he would really like me back or something, even if he did he wasn't aloud to. What was that law called again?_

"_Everyone stick together." sensei ordered, I rolled my eyes again. I didn't think she had any clue what she was doing. I let out a bored sigh and followed the rest of my class towards the thirteenth squad's barracks. I stayed at the very back of the group, so I could have more time to look around the place. Maybe I could even get away with daydreaming if I was lucky. I wondered how all the Shinigami knew their way around this place, it was so huge. "Class, this is the thirteenth squad's barracks. This squad is led by Ukitake Jūshirō. His second in command is Shiba Kaien. The commander of a squad is called the taicho, and their second in command is called the fukutaicho."_

'_And I absolutely love how she's talking to us like we're four. How dandy is this?' I let out a sigh and blocked her out, her voice was just annoying me. I licked my lips and rocked back and forth on my heels, thinking about Hirako Shinji. I wondered if he'd remember me if he saw me…since he hadn't seen me in years. I'd seen him at a distance a couple of times, but I was never close enough to actually have a conversation with him. I hadn't changed all that much besides my hair falling to the bottom of my shoulders rather than being cut up in a bob style. My bangs were grown out to where they fell halfway down my nose and I parted my hair on the left side, pinning my bangs over with a bobby pin. Currently my hair was pulled up into pigtails, which looked awesome on me if I do say so myself._

"_Now then, on to the thirteenth squad's training grounds." I groaned inwardly and followed the rest of my class into the training grounds. We watched some of the Shinigami train for a while before they decided to give us a real show. We watched them battle using their Zanpakuto, and dang was it exciting. A little scary I'll admit, but exciting nonetheless. They showed us how they used kido, which was really fascinating. They could do all sorts of things with kido, including blasting holes through walls or trapping a prisoner; it was so awesome._

"_Ok class, let's leave the thirteenth squad to their training." sensei said. We walked around the barracks for awhile until we followed her off the thirteenth squad's barracks, and into the twelfth squad's. "This squad is led by Hikifune Kirio, with Sarugaki Hiyori_ _as her second in command."_

'_Ok, I'm getting really tired of this. I don't think I can stand much more of her talking to us like we're four, and we haven't even been here that long.' I wrinkled my nose annoyed and looked back at the door we had just entered through. I took a quick glance back to the front to see our sensei talking to the taicho of squad twelve. She seemed deeply immersed in the conversation, she probably wouldn't notice if I disappeared for a little while. My fellow classmates wouldn't even notice since I was always quiet, I just faded into the background most of the time._

_I bit down on my lower lip and took a small step backwards; no reaction from her. I took another step; she continued talking. I grinned and continued taking steps backward until I made it to the door. I looked at all my classmates for a moment and smiled to myself realizing they hadn't noticed my movements either. I looked back up at my sensei, she hadn't noticed anything as well. I slipped out of the room and slid the door shut as quietly as I could. I punched the air in victory and headed down the twelfth squad's hallways. I was good, I'd make an excellent Shinigami when I was older._

_I looked around, studying the place. It was quite nice here, I wouldn't have gotten this chance to look around at everything had I stayed with my class. Everything was all clean, and the surroundings inside were really well kept; I didn't think I saw one scuff on the wooden floor. The outside was even more beautiful than the inside, the Sakura trees were actually blooming; it was so gorgeous here. As I walked around none of the Shinigami seemed to notice me, if they did notice they didn't seem to care. They probably thought I was some Shinigami's child or something. Maybe Shinigami brought their children to work with them sometimes, that would be a major plus for me. I could make my way around without being bothered. I giggled to myself and finally found my way out of the twelfth squad's barracks._

'_Alright, now which way do I go to get to the fifth squad's barracks?' I scratched my head in thought and wrinkled my brow. 'Hmm, I know I can find it. I just need to be patient and use my brain. Think Cho, think.' I walked over to a Sakura tree and plopped down under it, trying to think of everything I knew about the fifth squad. 'Let's see…umm the flower is the Lily of the Valley which signifies sacrifice, danger, pure love, humility, and sweetness. How the heck is that supposed to help me?' _

_I glared at nothing imparticular and resisted the urge to throw a temper tantrum. I knew I couldn't throw a tantrum in the middle of Seireitei, I was too old to be doing something that childish. I finally calmed myself down from being angry and hopped to my feet. I looked around the area for a moment before I just started wandering around Seireitei with no real idea where I was going, I'd find the fifth squad sooner or later. Panicking and getting worked up over not being able to find it would get me no where, just give me a headache. Staying calm was the best thing I could do, it was especially helpful in battle. I rolled my eyes to myself and wandered onto another squad's barracks._

'_Hmm, I wonder which squad this is?' I licked my lips in thought and finally shrugged. 'Eh, whatever. I'll just wander around a bit more.' I giggled to myself and walked down the hallway, studying it. 'Wow, this place is rather pretty. I wish I lived in Seireitei, why can't I be an adult already? Well…then again…I really don't want to be an adult. Maybe, just an Academy graduate. Yeah, that'd be fine.' I nodded to myself at my smart thought and heard someone say_

"_Little girl, are you lost?" I turned around to see a man with black hair that hung above his shoulders and a youthful appearance like most Shinigami. He didn't seem like he had a Zanpakuto on him so he was most likely from the fourth squad, they were the medical squad. I put my hand behind my head and laughed._

"_Ha ha, a little bit." I admitted "I've been here before, but I always seem to get myself lost."_

"_Oh, that's quite alright." he said politely "Can I help you find anywhere?"_

"_I'm looking for the fifth squad, I need to tell to my sister something really important." I lied. He smiled and nodded, understanding that I didn't want to talk about it. Thank goodness he respected my privacy, I didn't want to have to think up another lie because he seemed like a nice enough guy._

"_Well you're not that far off, this is the fourth squad." he explained_

"_Oh that's awesome, I guess I have a decent memory." I said smiling. He nodded with a smile and gave me directions on how to get to the fifth squad from the fourth, pointing where need be. "Arigato Mr…"_

"_Yamada." he answered "Yamada Seinosuke, fukutaicho of the fourth squad." I smiled and said_

"_Arigato then, Yamada-san." He nodded, and I headed off in the direction he had pointed out to me. I was so excited, I was going to get to see Shinji again after so many years. I'd even know what the barracks would look like…maybe even his office if I was lucky. I giggled to myself and finally stepped onto the fifth squad's area; I was in my own personal heaven now. I licked my lips and skipped down the hallway of the barracks in pure bliss. _

'_Where to find the taicho's office?' I looked around and tried thinking of all this logically. I had finally made it to the fifth squad, but now I didn't know which room would be Shinji's office. How was I going to figure this out? _

'_I guess the only real thing I can do is…look inside every single door and hope I come across his office!' I giggled to myself and walked down the hallway looking for a door of some sort. 'Ah hah, found one.' I grabbed the handle and slid the door open. 'Apparently not this door.' I shrugged and slid the door shut to the shower room. I continued walking down the hallway, opening doors when I came across them. I was beginning to lose hope when I finally opened the door to the taicho's office._

"_Oh yeah! Go me!" I cheered. I giggled to myself and stepped inside the office. I carefully slid the door shut and looked around the office. There was no one in here, but that didn't mean I couldn't look around. My smile widened, and I walked a little further into the office. "I wonder what I'll find in here." _

_I skipped around the office, looking at all sorts of different things. I found a huge collection of hats, they looked like ones from the world of the living. _

"_Maybe when I join his squad I'll get him a hat." I giggled to myself and started looking around the bookshelf. "Wow, there's all sorts of things here. A poetry book? I didn't think he'd be the type to read poetry." I slid the book off the shelf and walked over to his desk. I sat in the seat and opened up the book. I never was the type that could read without music though._

_I looked around his office again, and my eyes finally landed on a record player. 'Perfect.' I hopped out of the chair and started looking around, trying to find some music. I looked through a few drawers, finding nothing but a bunch of files and opened all sorts of little cubby doors trying to find music. I was enjoying being able to explore. I giggled finally coming across some acoustic music and put the huge disk on the record player. I set the needle right and listened as an acoustic guitar started strumming. I smiled serenely and walked back over to his desk. I hopped back up into the chair and flipped a few pages into the book before I came across a poem that caught my attention._

Poem on Love and Death

by William Penn

They that love beyond the world cannot be separated by it.

Death cannot kill what never dies.

Nor can spirits ever be divided, that love and live in the same divine principle, the root

and record of their friendship.

If absence be not death, neither is theirs.

Death is but crossing the world, as friends do the seas; they live in one another still.

For they must need be present, that love and live in that which is omnipresent.

In this divine glass they see face to face; and their converse is free, as well as pure.

This is the comfort of friends, that though they may be said to die, yet their friendship and

society are, in the best sense, ever present, because immortal.

'_Hm, I wonder what that's supposed to mean.' I pondered it for a second and finally read it through another time, only out loud this time rather than silently. I thought for a few more seconds, maybe about thirty, and it finally hit me. I was a rather intelligent child after all._

"_Wow, it's meaning is beautiful. This William Penn guy sure knows what he's talking about." I said, smiling to myself._

"_He does, don't he?" I gasped and my head snapped up. Shinji stood in the doorway, grinning at me. I felt my cheeks go hot, and I grimaced. He was kicking me out of his office, for sure. "It's quite the beautiful poem, so much meaning in so lil' words huh?" I nodded, in slight shock that he wasn't asking me what I was doing in his office. He slid the door of his office shut and walked across the floor towards me. He went around the desk beside me and turned the pages of the book. I didn't understand what he was doing, why wasn't he angry? "It's a lil' short, and it's by a anonymous writer but I still like it." I tilted my head to the side slightly and looked down at the page._

Love is always patient and kind.

It is never jealous.

Love is never boastful or conceited.

It is never rude or selfish.

It does not take offense and is not resentful.

"_It's my fav love poem." he explained_

"_It's beautiful Hirako-taicho." I said looking up at him. He grinned at me and patted the top of my head._

"_I haven't seen ya in a while Choyo-chan." he stated. I felt my cheeks going hot but managed to say_

"_It's Cho." His grin widened, and he nodded._

"_Right, I almost forgot ya don't like the name Choyo." I nodded and swayed to the music. "How've ya been? Not climbing on walls again are ya?" he asked with a smirk. I felt my blush darken and shook my head._

"_No, kicked the habit. I've been ok, how've you been Hirako-taicho?" I asked sweetly. He shrugged and turned some more pages of the book._

"_Alright. Tryin' ta deal with all my duties as taicho." he replied. I smiled, and he stopped at another page. "Read this one, I don't see it as a poem. More like a quote." I nodded and looked down at the page._

STRENGTH AND COURAGE

By: Sylvia Kelley

It takes strength to fit takes courage to stand out.

It takes strength to feel a friend's takes courage to feel your own pain.

It takes strength to hide your own takes courage to show them.

It takes strength to endure takes courage to stop it.

It takes strength to stand takes courage to lean on another.

It takes strength to takes courage to be loved.

It takes strength to takes courage to live.

"_Wow." I muttered. I looked up at him, and he grinned._

"_That quote taught me alot." he said "It helped make me the person I am taday." I tilted my head to the side._

"_If I can ask taicho, how?" I looked at him confused, and his amused grin turned into a sincere smile._

"_Cho-chan, look at the quote one more time." he advised. I nodded and read the quote through again. "Strength and courage are two different things." I looked up at him, and he continued giving me that same smile. "Strength is an outer action whereas courage is an inner action. Having courage is better than having strength because with courage you're brave enough to turn that courage from an inner strength into an outer strength. You're not afraid to be yourself, and you're not afraid to let people in." _

_He hadn't used a bit of slang when he was explaining the quote to me, it showed me how serious he was about that quote. And everything he'd said about it, made sense to me; he was such a wise man. _

"_Have courage Cho-chan, not strength." I nodded, and he sighed. "As much as I've enjoyed spending this time with ya, I should probley let yer sensei know I found ya. She's been in a tizzy, worryin' bout ya." I pouted and hopped down from his seat._

"_Do I have to go?" I asked, he nodded grinning. I pouted slightly but nodded knowing he was right. "Ok Hirako-taicho." He continued grinning at me and picked his poetry book up from the desk. I headed over to the record player and stopped the music in time to hear the book shut._

"_Cho-chan?" I turned and looked at him curiously. He walked over to me and held the book out to me. "Keep this, kay?" I looked at the book hesitantly and back at him. "I'm sure it'll teach ya alot."_

"_Demo Hirako-taicho." He shook his head grinning and put his hand atop my head._

"_It's a present, keep it without complaints Cho-chan." I took the book from his hand and nodded, embarrassed with myself. "I can get another anytime." I nodded again, and he patted my head. "Let's get ya back ta yer sensei." I nodded and he put his hand on my shoulder, leading me out of the room. I clutched the book tightly and smiled to myself, a huge blush on my face. Shinji was such an amazing man._

I opened my eyes and turned over in my bed. I felt a smile sitting on my lips and giggled thinking about that day. Sensei had went completely nuts, crying when I finally came to the first squad's barracks with Shinji. She'd been so worried that she wouldn't be able to find me, and I would be hurt. I hadn't really cared, it was her own fault for not watching me. After that little event she'd kept her eyes on me for a good month after that.

I shook my head of the thoughts and quickly got out of my bed. I walked over to my bookcase, grabbed the book without even thinking about where it was on the shelf, and head back to my bed. I slipped back under the covers and turned the pages of the book to page one hundred five. Although I knew the poem by heart since that day, I still had to see it in ink.

Love is always patient and kind.

It is never jealous.

Love is never boastful or conceited.

It is never rude or selfish.

It does not take offense and is not resentful.

'Shinji, you were really onto something with this poem. But did you honestly think I wouldn't notice the author's name was intentionally ripped out?' I felt a smile on my lips, Shinji _really_ was an amazing man.

**Author's Note: Damn this was a long chapter. But despite the length, I hope you all liked this chapter. It showed a bit more of the history between Shinji and Cho. I especially loved writing this chapter because all of the poetry. I'm a sucker for a good poem so I thought it'd be nifty to add a good few poems in here that I really liked. It also showed how deep of a man Shinji is, despite his goofy personality. So...yeah. I hope you all liked it. PLEASE REVIEW! I want to know that I'm doing a good job on it.**

**Disclaimer on Bleach: I haven't done one of these yet, so I'll just say for the entire story that I do NOT own Bleach. This is the only disclaimer I'll do for this story.**

**Dislclaimer on poem two: The poem about love is NOT my own work. It's from the amazing movie** _A Walk to Remember_**. I couldn't find the author of the poem so I thought it'd be the perfect one to add for the anonymous writer.**


	8. Chapter Eight: Invitations

"Cho, wait up!" I turned around and smiled seeing Hina come running over.

"Hey Hina-chan." She nodded, putting her hands on her knees and took some quick breathes. "How far away were you from me?" She held up her index finger saying 'wait a second' and I crossed my arms infront of my chest.

"I was all the way down the last hallway when you turned the corner." she finally said, taking a deep breath afterwards.

"Whoopsy." I mumbled, she waved her hand at me.

"No big deal." She finally stood straight and said "Anyway, I wanted to know what you were doing later today." I scratched my head in thought and said

"Ano…I'm not sure yet. I think I might be going shopping." Her face lit up.

"That's perfect, mind if I tag along?" I grimaced, I hated having to say no to Hina.

"Gomen Hina-chan, it's for my sister's wedding rehearsal." Her face dropped, and she nodded. "Gomen." I repeated

"It's fine, I completely understand." she said, a smile coming back on her face. "I'll just see you tomorrow." She took a few steps down the hallway when I suddenly remembered I had yet to invite her to the rehearsal and wedding. I hadn't passed out invites to anyone yet since they'd just finished getting made yesterday, and of course I'd forgotten that I actually had them with me today; whoops…again.

_**Smooth doll-face, real smooth.**_

"Gah, Hina wait a sec." I shouted. Hina turned to face me, and I searched through the bag I was carrying. I brought out an envelope with her name on it and said "I haven't really gotten around to inviting anyone yet so it sorta slipped my mind. Gomen." I handed her the envelope and smiled. "It's for the rehearsal dinner and for the wedding itself. You'll have to bring it with you demo-" I stopped feeling her arms go around me.

"Arigato Cho-chan!" she shouted, hugging me tightly.

"Hina-chan…can't…breathe." I choked. She continued hugging me tightly, and I coughed loudly. "Hina!"

"Ha ha, gomen. I got excited." she said, quickly letting go. I took a few deep breathes and said

"It's fine Hina-chan, the time and dates are on both invites so you won't-"

"Yeah yeah, forget. I gotcha." she said treasuring the envelope. "Arigato again Cho-chan." I nodded, smiling to myself. She held the envelope close to her chest and sighed dramatically. "I feel so privileged." I rolled my eyes amused.

"You should feel privileged, noble things are real hard to get into." I explained, she nodded in agreement.

"I've never been to one of these things, I'm so excited. I'm going to let the taicho know I'm leaving so I can go buy a new outfit for this thing." she told me. I nodded and couldn't help but giggle seeing how excited she was. "Eeee!" she squealed, skipping down the hallway. "Yay!"

I shook my head in amusement and headed over to the indoor training room. Everyone in the squad had gotten a little more used to me, but that didn't mean they were all really nice. They were still slightly hostile so when I'd walk in a room, they'd all stare for a second before looking away. A few of them had gotten around to actually talking to me, including all the girls in our squad and a few of them men so that was a good thing. I sighed to myself and opened the door to the room. Our ninth seat went flying into a wall and Okito grinned.

"Ha, take that. Any other challengers?" he asked loudly. He sounded even more obnoxious then usual, I wondered how many fights he'd won already. Was anyone going to challenge him. "No one? God, don't be a bunch of pussys, you're men damn it."

"I will!" I volunteered, all heads turned in my direction.

'No wonder he pulled out the "you're men" comment, only the men are in here. Did all the girls go shopping again?' I smiled sweetly and gracefully walked into the room. Okito rolled his eyes annoyed.

"Of course. You're all too afraid ta fight, and now I hafta beat up on sweet little Cho." he shouted angrily. I giggled and carefully set my Zanpakuto on the floor. I slipped my sandals off and dropped my bag beside the lot of it. I pulled my hair into a high ponytail and looked at Taiga.

"Pass me a katana, will you?" I asked nicely. He rolled his eyes at my politeness and reached over to the swords. He tossed a wooden katana to me, and I caught it in-between my index and middle finger.

_**Heh, you almost dropped it.**_

_Will you be quiet, I need to focus right here._

_**Whatever.**_

I walked across the room and faced Okito. I got into my fighting stance and watched Okito get into his.

"Ready?" he asked. I ignored his question and shunpoed to where I was behind him. I swiped at his head, and he ducked avoiding my attack. He slashed the sword at me, and I blocked using my own.

CLICK, CLICK, CLICK, CLICK, CLICK, CLICK, CLICK, CLICK.

We were on a roll, blocking and parrying each other's attacks. We'd done this so many times that I'd improved a great amount, his advice was always to help me better my skills. And although we'd fought each other so many times that I pretty much knew his techniques and moves by heart, I had yet to win against him. He'd just randomly do something I didn't expect, and I'd be defeated. But it was for my own good, if I got too comfortable in a battle with _real _katanas I could lose an arm or worse. I always had to be on guard. 'There.' I faked a left swing to his arm and hit him below the knee.

"Kuso!" he swore. I grinned and moved my arm upward, elbowing him in the nose. I turned slightly and bashed him in the side of the head with the bottom part of my katana. I hooked my right foot under his leg when he went off balance from my first attack and managed to knock him to the ground. His katana flew from his hand as he dropped to the ground, and I moved quickly enough to where I was straddling him, my wooden katana at his throat. I smiled sweetly, and his eyes widened in shock. "Fuckin' hell, awesome job Cho." I giggled and quickly hopped off him. He jumped to his feet beside me and rapped his arm around my head. He pulled me to him and managed to bury my face in his chest when he hugged me. "You've improved so much Cho-chan, I'm so proud of you." he exclaimed

"Ohato canh breaf!" I managed to get out.

"Nani?" he asked, removing his arms from around me. I pushed my face out of his chest and said

"I was saying I couldn't breathe." He let out an enthusiastic laugh, and I heard laughs coming from what sounded like Taiga and Emori. "Demo, besides that. Arigato, I couldn't have gotten so far without your constructive criticism." He smiled at me, and I felt arms go around my waist from behind me.

"You did great kid." I put my hands on Taiga's arms, hugging him as best I could, and smiled.

"Arigato, maybe I'll go up some seats in a year if I keep this up." I said, being slightly modest.

_**Come on! Can't you be conceited for once?**_

_No, that's not nice._

_**So what? You're better than that. You should be going up to third seat in at least a month and a half.**_

_You're so…urg. I don't know how I manage to put up with you._

_**Because you know I'm right.**_

I ignored her thoughts and smiled at Okito still standing infront of me. Taiga removed his arms, and I turned to face him and a jealous looking Emori. Okito moved over picking up his sword, and I handed mine over to him.

"Nah, you'll do way better than that. I'm just gonna be a little frustrated when I'm pushed down a seat." Taiga said "I worked pretty hard, but if you're better you deserve a higher seat."

"Don't talk like that." I whined "I don't want to hear you talking about getting demoted, I haven't even been here six months Taiga-san." He chuckled amused, and I gasped remembering the invites. "I have something for you all by the way." I skipped back over to my bag and rummaged through it until I came across envelopes with their names on the front. I turned to find the three of them giving me curious looks. "My older sis's wedding rehearsal is coming up, her weddings' about a month after. I have invites for the three of you to both events." I said, handing them the envelopes.

"Arigato Cho-chan." Emori said smiling "I'll be at both." I smiled slightly.

"Anything we need to wear in particular?" Okito asked, I shook my head.

"Nah, you can come in wearing your shihakushō if you don't wanna dress up." I said smiling "Hina-chan's dressing up though, but you guys know how she is." They all nodded, and I smiled to myself. "Just make sure you bring the right invite to both events or the guards won't let you in"

"I'll try to remember, but I can't make any guarantees that I will." Taiga mumbled. I giggled to myself and said

"Anyway, I need to go invite Aizen-fukutaicho and Hirako-taicho."

"Why're you inviting them?" Emori asked, sounding slightly jealous "I thought you didn't like Aizen."

"I don't, I'm inviting all the rest of the fukutaichos though. And he would definitely know something was up if he wasn't invited so…I have to." I said grimacing a little "Plus, he hasn't done anything to me so I have no reason to be mean to him."

_**Now that's a lie, and you know it.**_

_Yeah, but I can't tell them what happened the other day. They're not going to get involved in this, I won't let them._

_**You're too protective of them.**_

_Big deal, you shouldn't be making any remarks. I'm listening to your advice about him, aren't I?_

She didn't say anything, and I smirked in victory; for the first time in forever I'd got her cornered. Taiga shook his head to himself and said

"You're too nice Cho-chan." I smiled sweetly and shrugged.

"Like I haven't heard that before." They all rolled their eyes at me, and I giggled.

'That was pretty nifty how they did that without even planning it. I wonder if they even noticed that they rolled their eyes in unison.'

"Anyway, I've got to head off to give all the taichos and fukutaichos their invites. I'll see you guys later." I said smiling "Arigato for the warm-up Okito-kun." Okito nodded and looked around the room.

"Alright, who's next?" he asked. I giggled and walked out of the room. I had only taken about ten steps when I heard footsteps come up behind me.

"Cho-chan." I looked back at Emori, and he smiled. "Would you mind going out with me for a drink tonight?" I chewed on my lower lip in thought and he said "I was planning on going with Taiga and Okito, but they're both busy tonight." I nodded, understanding what he was saying, but I didn't know if I could believe him. What if he hadn't even asked them and just wanted to get me alone? I didn't really know what I would do in a situation like that, but I couldn't say no to him. Then again…I didn't know if I was going to be shopping with my sister. I'd take the easy way out and ask what time before saying no.

"What time?" I asked, trying not to seem _too _interested

"Around nine." he replied

_Shit, that means I can't get out of it. Great, just great. Now I have to say yes._

_**No it doesn't. You can still say no.**_

_But that would be so mean._

_**If you don't like the guy then just tell him. Maybe he just wants to go out as friends.**_

_Doubt that, and since when did you think like that?_

_**Since I knew you didn't like the guy.**_

_Uh huh._

_**Just go out with him, have a drink or two, and if he hits on you let him down easy.**_

_I guess that's the only real thing I can do huh?_

_**You bet, he'll think something's up if you say no. Do this in the sneaky way.**_

_Right._

"That sounds good. It stays out of the way with the rest of my plans for the day." I said smiling a bit

"Plans?" he questioned. It seemed like he was trying hard not to sound jealous, but I could tell he was thinking I was seeing someone.

"My sister and I might go out shopping for outfits for her rehearsal dinner." I explained "And Oka-san won't let us wear anything we already have, she's quite picky about things like this."

"Oh, well I'll meet you at the White Lotus at nine then." he said, it seemed like he was finally relaxing for the first time since I'd seen him today. I nodded and said

"I'll see you then." I turned on my heel and continued my journey down the hallway. This was perfect, just plain perfect. Now what was I supposed to do? I looked over my shoulder and let out a sigh of relief not seeing Emori. Then, I let out a loud groan of frustration.

_Great just great, this is fantastic._

_**Ah, stop complaining.**_

I glared at the floor, the glare was actually meant for her, and continued down the hallway. I walked into Shinji's office without even bothering to knock, and he looked up from talking to Aizen.

"Cho, is everthin' alright?" he asked, slightly confused.

_Crap, was I still glaring?_

_**Yep, and you looked extremely pissed off.**_

"I'm fine Hirako-taicho." I said, pulling out my happy face again. "Ano, I have something for you." I went through my bag, finding both the envelopes I was looking for and looked back up at Shinji. "I was hoping you wouldn't mind coming to my sister's wedding rehearsal next week." I walked further into the room and handed him the envelope. I looked at Aizen standing beside me and smiled. "You're invited as well Aizen-fukutaicho." I handed him and envelope as well and continued. "There's an invite to the wedding in there as well, it's in a month so you don't need to worry about that for a while."

"Arigato Nagataka-san." Aizen said, pulling out his _fake _genuine smile. "I'll be sure to clear my calendar for both days."

"Arigato Aizen-fukutaicho. The times are on there as well." I stated. "I hope you'll be able to make it Hirako-taicho." Shinji grinned at me and said

"I'll be there." he promised. I smiled, ignoring the fact that my cheeks were probably a maroon color by now, and said

"Arigato. I need to go pass invites out to the other taichos and fukutaichos so I'll be seeing ya. Gomen for interrupting." I bowed slightly and walked back across the office. I'd almost made it out the door when I heard

"Cho." I looked back at Shinji to find him with that same grin on his face. "Yer still goin' with me ta the fireworks festival tamorrow right?" I felt my lips curve into a smile. "I'd hoped it wouldn't be interruptin' yer sister's plans." he said

"Nope, nothing wedding wise is planned that day." I smiled and said "She's staying home with her fiancé to watch the fireworks so it'll be us and whoever else we're with." He nodded, and his grin widened a fraction.

"I'll see ya tamorrow Cho." I nodded, still smiling, and walked out the door. I slid it shut and resisted the urge to squeal in excitement.

_He remembered, he actually remembered._

_**Well of course he remembered. He likes you too much for his own good.**_

_He does not._

_**Keep thinking that, but in the end I'll be right.**_

I rolled my eyes at her and began walking away from his office. 'Alright, now I need to think about who to invite next. Hopefully all the taichos are in their offices around this time. I don't think I necessarily have to find the fukutaichos, I can just ask the taichos to give their fukutaicho the invite. Yeah, so I won't be running around Seireitei all day looking like a moron.' I let out a sigh, trying to think of which squad to visit first. 'Maybe I should go see Kuchiki-taicho. I bet he doesn't get all that many visitors since he's a grumpy noble.' I giggled to myself but groaned realizing I was walking in the wrong direction to get to the sixth squad's barracks. I sighed, getting ready to turn around when I heard

_**Cho, watch out.**_

I turned to find myself face to face with Aizen. 'Oh fuck, this isn't good.' I stood there for a moment in slight shock, wondering how he'd gotten this close to me without me feeling his presence. This was too creepy for it's own good. I stared into his brown eyes, trying to find out if I could see the evil behind his glasses; I couldn't. What were these glasses, his shield or something?

"Arigato for the invitation Nagataka-san." Aizen said, he sounded like he was toying with me. He wasn't using the same voice he used around everyone else. And to be dead honest, it scared me shitless.

"Ano…no problem Aizen-fukutaicho." I mumbled, breaking eye contact with him. I felt his fingers touch the side of my face and I flinched, completely confused with his actions. Why the hell was he touching me? He moved his fingers slightly to where he was lightly running his fingers through my snow white hair and hooked his fingers under my chin. He tilted my chin up, I felt my heels leave the ground, and his menacing eyes found mine again.

"Nagataka-san, do you know what you remind me of?" I managed to change my intimidated expression to a curious one. "You're so fragile, like glass. Easily broken, a porcelain doll if you will." he said, a smirk on his face. I would've been insulted had anyone else said something like that to me, but he held my interest. I needed to find a way to get closer to him, I needed to figure him out. "Yet, at the same time you're so fascinating. You never do what I expect, it amuses me. You're so different Nagataka-san, so hard to read."

"Really?" I asked, trying not to sound like I was scared "What about me is so hard for you to read?" His smirk widened a fraction, and he released my chin. I felt my heels touch the ground again and he walked passed me, not saying another word. I looked back at him walking and made myself walk slowly down the hallway. I wasn't going to let him figure me out, if I could keep him fascinated by me then so be it. I'd figure him out, but the first thing I really wanted to know was what the hell that guy wanted from me?

**Author's Note: So well...yeah...that's the chapter. I hoped you all found it enjoyable, because I sure enjoyed writing it. I love Shinji, he's so fun to write. PLEASE REVIEW! I will NOT update unless I get FIVE reviews for this chapter. Yeah, it's kinda mean. But I really want some input on this story, and to motivate you all to review. Here's a little preview of the next chapter.**

PREVIEW!

He wasn't smiling at all, but his eyes showed me how happy he was to be this close to me. He moved slightly to where his back was against the roof one hand behind his head. He placed the other arm around me and pushed me as close to him as I could get. I smiled slightly and laid my head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat.


	9. Chapter Nine: Thoughts and Stargazing

I walked down the street boredly, not really paying attention to anything going on around me, and sighed. Why had I gotten myself into this situation, why hadn't I just said no to Emori in the first place? Why was I such a nice person? God, I was digging my own grave and to make matters even better Kurisutaru was helping me dig it. I wrinkled my brow annoyed and looked up, the White Lotus finally came into view. What was I going to say to Emori? I had a feeling he would make a move, but I didn't know what I was supposed to say when he did. Kurisutaru had said to let him down easy, but I didn't know how to do that. In the few past relationships that I'd been in, I was always the one to get broken up with. I really needed some advice.

_Kurisutaru, can I talk to you for a second?_

_**Yeah, sure. What's going on in that little head of yours?**_

_How do I let someone down easy?_

She didn't say anything for a moment, and for a second I thought she might not know how to say no to someone nicely. Then she started laughing, and god was it an annoying laugh. Couldn't she be serious for one measly minute?

_**Are you kidding me Cho?**_

_No, I'm being serious. How do I?_

_**You're serious, you've never said no to a guy before?**_

_Never._

_**Oh boy, this'll be harder than I thought.**_

_You're joking right?_

_**Gomen doll. No joke, if you've never said no to a guy before you're gonna feel bad no matter what you say.**_

I sighed to myself and thought sarcastically

_Of course. Just my luck._

_**That's how it is.**_

I nodded, letting another sigh escape my lips.

_So what do I say?_

_**Well…he makes his move saying something like "Listen Cho, I really like you alot. I know it sounds stupid that I'm saying this-"**_

_Kurisutaru be serious!_

_**I am, he'll say something like that.**_

_You're talking like I've never been asked out before._

_**Well…have you?**_

_YES!!!_

_**Alright gomen. Anyway…where was I? Oh yes. "But I want to be with you." Then you say "Listen…" What's that guy's name again?**_

_Emori._

_**Right, you say. "Listen Emori, you're a great guy but I just don't have those feelings towards you."**_

_Is that it?_

_**Pretty much. He might try to get you to reconsider, babbling on and on until you feel like you wanna stab yourself…or him.**_

_Kurisutaru!_

_**But you stand your ground Cho. You don't give in to his pleading, you stick by the answer you gave him…which is no.**_

_I know what answer it is, you don't need to remind me._

_**I'm just trying to make sure you're prepared.**_

_Uh huh arigato. Kuso, there he is._

_**Good luck.**_

_Nani? You're going away?_

_**I have to, it'll give you some privacy.**_

_When were you ever concerned with giving me privacy?_

_**Shinji's a different story, Aizen too. You need me around the two of them.**_

_I do not need you when I'm around them, I can take care of myself._

_**Yeah, yeah. Here he comes, later.**_

_Oh no you-_

"Konnichiwa Cho-chan." I looked up from my feet to see Emori standing in front of me. I smiled at him and said

"Hey, how are you?" He shrugged and smiled at me.

"I'm good, you?" I shrugged as well and shuffled my feet on the ground nercously. Why couldn't he be Shinji? Shinji knew how to make me feel comfortable...even though he made me nervous at the same time. But it was a good nervous with him, I really like Shinji alot...and I had a feeling he liked me too.

"Alright I guess." He smiled again and nodded towards the White Lotus.

"You wanna head inside?" he asked, I nodded. We walked inside, got our table, and ordered some sake. The whole time we were waiting for the sake we mainly talked about the Gotei 13 and our squad. We didn't really focus on one subject, it all just blended together. Nothing about the conversation stood out, even though I talked to Shinji about the same type of things Emori and I were talking about everything Shinji said stood out to me. Even the lamest subject caught my attention when I was talking to him. After a few minutes of waiting the sake finally arrived, and I poured a shit load in my glass. I passed Emori the bottle and chugged my drink. Hopefully having some sake in me would help calm me down. "Damn Cho-chan, you that thirsty?" he asked, shocked that I'd chugged _that _much alcohol. Eh, he didn't know how much I drank. We'd never really been out drinking together, so I wasn't surprised that he had no clue about my love for alcohol. I nodded, lowering the glass from my lips.

"A little, I feel slightly dehydrated." I replied. He nodded and gave me a concerned look.

"Would you like some water? That might help." I shook my head.

"Nah, I'm fine with just the sake." I said, pouring some more in my glass. I raised the glass to my lips, restraining myself from pouring it all down my throat in one try. I couldn't get drunk on this outing, no matter how much I felt like I needed to. I couldn't afford to get drunk, I was going to restrain myself at all costs. Especially since I didn't know if Emori would try to take advantage of me being drunk. Emori wasn't a bad guy, don't get me wrong but I knew that he liked me. So if I got drunk, I might've said yes to him asking me out even though I didn't want to. Shinji would never do that to me though, one time in particular I remembered getting slightly drunk and Shinji had walked me home like a complete gentleman. There were so many wonderful things about him.

"If you start feeling sick let me know, and I'll take you home." Emori said. I nodded, promising that I would, and took another _sip_. "So…uhh…did you wind up going shopping with your sister?" I nodded.

"Yeah, we both found some rather nice clothes so Oka-san was happy." I replied, scratching my head. "I really hate fancy clothes though, they all feel so heavy."

"Really? There most be alot of material." he said, taking a drink of sake. I nodded in agreement.

"Mhm, it's pretty annoying dealing with it all." I looked around the room for a second and finally turned my attention back to Emori. This date was going to be such a waste of time, time that I could've been spending with Shinji. "So…what'd you think of that last mission?" I asked. And after that, the conversations seemed to flow a little better. We didn't talk about ourselves specifically, but we did talk about our lives a bit. I learnt alot about him in this little outing, but like I had predicted the spark just wasn't there. After about an hour and a half we exited the White Lotus, getting ready to part ways.

"I had a great time hanging out with you." Emori said smiling. I smiled back, putting my hands behind my back.

"Me too, next time we should make sure Hina, Okito, and Taiga can come." I said, trying to imply I saw him as a friend, without having to say it. He nodded in agreement, but I could tell by his eyes that he didn't mean it.

"Yeah. Listen, Cho." I looked at Emori realizing he hadn't added the suffix to my name, and he took a step closer.

'Oh fuck, this isn't good.'

"This might sound awkward, but I really like you alot." he continued

_**Wow, that sounds like something I heard in a play.**_

_Kurisutaru, shush!_

"And I was hoping that maybe…you felt that way about me." I sighed to myself and lowered my head.

"Emori, you're an awesome guy. Really, demo…" I stopped and made myself look up at him. "You're a friend, and that's all I'll ever be able to see you as. Gomen." I said, looking him straight in the eyes. I could see the hurt flash in his eyes but resisted the urge to comfort him. I couldn't do it, especially since I was the cause of his pain. After a long thirty seconds he nodded and said

"Yeah, I get it."

"Gomen." I apologized

"No, don't worry about it. Forget I ever mentioned it." he said, sounding hurt "I'll see you tomorrow." He turned on his heel and walked off in the opposite direction I'd be going.

"Emori." I said, he ignored me. I guessed I really had broken his heart, now I felt like a huge bitch. Tonight was turning out to be _fantastic_. I let out a sigh and turned in the direction of my home. I walked down the street, thinking about what I had just done. Maybe there had been some way I could have made it sound better than it really was, but giving him false hope wasn't something that I couldn't make myself do. I could never let myself lead someone on like that, that was just cruel. And I wasn't going to be a cruel person.

_Kurisutaru…_

_**Hai dear?**_

_Did I do ok?_

_**You did fine sweetie, you did as well as anyone could've done.**_

_You're sure?_

_**Positive.**_

I nodded to myself and continued my journey down the street. I let out a sigh, a sigh that showed how upset I really was, and finally decided I didn't want to go home tonight. I couldn't bear it, to face the criticism my parents always through in my face everyday. Maybe there was an extra room in the fifth squad's barracks I could stay in for the night. I sighed upon entering Seireitei and made my way to my squad's area. I looked around the vacant hallways boredly and finally decided I'd rather look at the stars than sleep anyway. I hopped up onto one of the roofs and laid back, gazing at the celestial beauty in the sky. I breathed in through my nose and exhaled, smelling the night air. It was all so peaceful, I didn't think there was anything that could ruin the night.

"Cho?" I looked back and smiled seeing Shinji standing a little ways away from me.

"Hirako-taicho." I acknowledged. I turned my attention back to the sky, putting my hands across my stomach, and felt the smile on my lips widen. My night had just gotten so much better. I was happy to run into Shinji of all people, especially since I'd been thinking about him all night. I heard Shinji's light footsteps walk across the roof until he was beside me, and he lazily sat down. He laid back and put his hands behind his head, staring up at the stars with me. I was feeling so at ease for the first time that night, Shinji just managed to make me feel so comfortable. I didn't know if he realized it, but I hoped he did. I wished he had the same feelings towards me that I had for him, maybe...being alone like this was a good thing. "It's so beautiful." I said after a few minutes of silence.

"It is." he agreed. I continued smiling and moved my gaze from the stars to the moon. "What're ya doin' out here Cho? Shouldn't ya be at home?" I glanced over at him for a moment before returning my gaze to the moon.

"Yeah, but I didn't want to go home. It's much more peaceful here."

"Won't yer parents be worried?" he asked after a few seconds, I shrugged.

"I don't really care." I admitted. "They've never really paid that much attention to me anyway. Well…" I chuckled to myself and closed my eyes. "Except when they're yelling at me that is." I opened one eye and looked over at him. He was still staring up towards the sky, but he didn't really seem focused on it. "I'd always been the rebellious child, and after I got older I became the quiet one. Fading into the background, trying not to cause a scene. I figured I'd be yelled at less the quieter I became, shows how wrong that logic was." I rambled, closing my eye. I didn't get what had made me bring it up, but I didn't stop. "I never did quite understand myself. I stayed rebellious, but I made sure that I was sweet enough to where none of their superiors would complain about me. They just thought I was a naturally curious child I guess." I shrugged at the thought and heard him say

"That day I found ya sittin' in my office readin'…" I opened my eyes and turned my head to look at him. He was turned on his side, propping himself up with his elbow, staring at me. "I was confused, I'd figured if I'd have found ya in my office ya'd be lookin' through my things fer Gotei 13 information. That's what most of the kids woulda done. But there ya were, sittin' in my chair readin' poetry and listenin' ta acoustic music. You were quite the intriguing girl."

"More like weird." I corrected. He shook his head in disagreement.

"Interestin, ya didn't seem rattled up bout' bein' lost or anything. Yer aura was so calming." he told me, I was surprised that he'd studied me _that_ closely that day. Maybe that was a good thing on my part. "I made sure I was the first ta accept yer application, yer quite the interestin' girl Cho." So he really had wanted me in his squad…wow.

"Woman." I disagreed, he grinned that same grin I was so accustomed to seeing.

"Gomen, interestin' woman." I smiled, my cheeks were feeling so hot against my skin. The wind blew by, hitting my face, making me realize how much I really was blushing. How embarrassing was this? I forced my eyes to move to where I was staring right into his eyes, I wasn't going to be the one to break eye contact with him this time. "I'm pretty sure, we're gonna be great friends Cho." he said softly. I felt my cheeks growing hotter but still refused to break eye contact with him. He continued staring into my eyes, and I began to wonder what he was thinking about; it was confusing the crap out of me.

Before I could even understand why I was doing it, I scooted closer to him until I was laying right beside him. My body was positioned towards his, my head a few inches below his elbow. He wasn't smiling at all, but his eyes showed me how happy he was to be this close to me. He moved slightly to where his back was against the roof one hand behind his head. He placed the other arm around me and pushed me as close to him as I could get. I smiled slightly and laid my head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat. It was so soothing to me, and I felt so at ease when I was with him. It felt so right, laying here next to him. I didn't really understand this feeling, but my heart felt like it was fluttering around in my chest. I'd never felt so happy in my entire life, I felt so complete at this moment. More complete thatn I'd ever felt. I wished that time could stand still, letting this moment last forever. It all felt like…we were made for each other. I sighed contently, closing my eyes. I snuggled close to him, feeling consciousness slowly leaving me. The last thing I remembered, was feeling a pair of incredibly soft lips against my forehead.

**Author's Note: He he! Well there you go, I hope you liked the chapter. I really enjoyed it because I finally got to put in some romance action between Shinji and Cho. Isn't he just the deepest guy you've ever met...haha, I wish I'd meet him in real life. That'd be amazing =] But anywho, thing's from here on out will be about how Shinji and Cho's relationship becomes even deeper, more involved, and whatnot. I would like to thank everyone for all the lovely reviews I got from the last chapter. See kiddies, reviews=good. Alright, same drill though. FIVE REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER. I think it's only fair, it makes me feel good about what I'm writing to get feedback. To motive you all to review again, here's a nice little preview of the next chapter.**

_Chapter Ten PREVIEW_

_"You look…so beautiful when you blush." I felt myself blushing darker, and he leaned in slightly closer. "You've got so much talent, intelligence, you're so kind. I don't know why any man wouldn't want to be with you."_

_He was so close now, so close to my face. Barely an inch away, I could feel his hot breath against my skin. _

_"You're so beautiful Cho." I opened my mouth, trying to get anything to come out. Any words at all, but silence instead. "Just tell me if you want me to stop." I closed my eyes, waiting to feel his lips against mine. Just when I felt his breath against my lips..._


	10. Chapter Ten: The Morning After

I groaned quietly, feeling the sun burning against my eyelids, and covered my eyes with the back of my hand.

'Stupid sun, why aren't my curtain's closed?' I let a sigh escape my lips and finally opened my eyes. The sun immediately blinded me, and I quickly shut my eyes. I realized right then and there that I wasn't in my bed at home, I was still on the roof of one of the fifth squad's buildings. I forced myself into a sitting position and squinted, feeling something brush against my skin. I felt a smile come to my lips seeing it was Shinji's taicho haori. I licked my lips absentmindedly and brought the material to my nose. I inhaled his scent, savoring the moment. We really had spent an entire night on the roof together, but I guessed that he knew he couldn't stay with me until I woke up. People would've talked, and we couldn't have that; especially since I was the daughter of a noble. But when he did leave he'd covered me up with his haori to keep me warm, knowing I'd give it back to him in the morning.

I felt my smile widened, and I finally forced myself to stand up, holding his haori to my chest. I treasured it, I was going to be rather reluctant to give it back but I knew I had to. I stretched slightly and jumped down off the roof. I landed in a crouched position and quickly stood, brushing my uniform off. I walked down the hallways of the fifth squad in bliss. I was so happy, nothing could ruin this moment. I giggled and closed my eyes, smelling the haori again. It smelled so good, his scent just kept me feeling so happy. I loved the smell of him, it was so intoxicating and addicting. I giggled again and moved my eyes up from the haori to see Emori standing at the end of the hallway talking with Okito.

'Kuso!'

I quickly moved the material away from my face and turned right, going down the new hallway. I walked a little way, resisting the urge to bury my nose in the white material, and studied the area. I thought for a few minutes, trying to figure out how to Shinji's office from this direction. After a few moments of standing there it clicked, and I walked the rest of the way down the hallway. I went left down the next hallway, took a right at the next, walked a little way further, and finally stopped infront of Shinji's office. God, that had been such a long confusing walk. The door was slightly slid open, I could hear voices inside the room. Who did they belong to?

"I can't believe you lost your haori, Hirako-taicho." Aizen of course, I knew that accursed voice of his anywhere. I smiled hearing Shinji's laugh and heard him say

"Eh, I couldn't help it Sousuke. The wind was pretty strong this mornin'." I giggled silently and lightly knocked on the door. "Yeah?" I slid the door the rest of the way open, and both men's eyes went to me. Shinji smiled when he saw it was me, and Aizen gave me that look he'd been giving me for the past few days when he saw me. He made sure that Shinji wouldn't see it though.

"Ano taicho, is this yours?" I asked, making myself sound curious. Shinji's lips stretched into a wider grin, and he chuckled.

"See I didn't lose it, Cho had it the whole time." Shinji said truthfully, but he still made it sound sarcastic so Aizen wouldn't be suspicious. Aizen rolled his eyes and said

"Hirako-taicho, be serious. You have a meeting this morning and showing up without your haori would've been-"

"Yeah, yeah. I getit Sousuke." Shinji interrupted, rolling his eyes. He grabbed a bunch of papers off his desk and said "Go ahead an' deliver these ta the rest of the taichos before the meeting." Aizen nodded, taking the files from Shinji.

"Hai, Hirako-taicho." he said respectfully. He bowed slightly and headed for the door. I quickly stepped inside the room and moved aside so Aizen could get by.

"Now I'll deal with you, ya lil' haori stealer." Shinji said sarcastically. I giggled to myself and rolled my eyes in amusement.

"Gomen taicho, I apologize for stealing your haori." I joked. "It's just so nifty that I couldn't resist."

"That's what they all say." Shinji said, rolling his eyes. Aizen slid the door shut behind him, and I sighed hearing his footsteps getting softer. I looked back at Shinji leaning against his desk, and he motioned me closer with his index finger. I smiled to myself and walked closer to him. I felt a blush creeping up my face, but I managed to ignore it. I stopped about two feet away from Shinji and handed him his haori. He grinned taking it from my fingers and quickly put it on. "Arigato taicho." I whispered, lowering my head

"Fer?" he asked curiously. I glanced up through my bangs, still blushing.

"Letting me use your haori." I mumbled. Shinji chuckled, still leaning against his desk, and said

"Well I couldn't let ya freeze, now could I?" I shook my head, my hair went flying all over the place. And not in a pretty delicate way, it was too messy and ratty to look delicate. "Yer hair looks kinda knotty." I grimaced realizing he was right, and he took my arms in his hands. He moved me closer to his desk and quickly went around it, opening a drawer. I heard some rummaging going on and watched him looking through a few drawers. What was he looking for? He finally pulled out a hairbrush and reached across his desk, taking my hand. He led me around the desk and gently pulled me to sit in his seat. I was slightly confused at what he was doing but felt my cheeks heat up feeling the brush running through my hair. Now I was _really_ embarrassed, I couldn't believe he was brushing my hair for me.

_**Awww, that's so cute. I wish a guy would brush my hair for me.**_

_I'm confused though._

_**HELLO! He fucking likes you, I would think it'd be obvious after last night.**_

_You think so?_

_**Cho, I know so. You need to make a move.**_

_Like what? What can I do?_

_**Ok, this is what you do. Latch onto his head and pull him close, kiss him passionately then rip his freaking clothe-**_

_KURISUTARU!!!_

I could just hear her laugh ringing in my ears, what the hell was she thinking this was; a bedroom? Or some sappy play?

_**I bet you wish it was a bedroom right about now.**_

_No, I don't. I wish I wouldn't have to be the one to make the first move. I wish he would just kiss me first._

_**Awww, you're so cute Cho. So old-fashioned about everything.**_

_So what? Girl's shouldn't have to make the first move. It's a guy's responsibility._

I could see her rolling her eyes right about now, she felt girl's should be the one's in-charge of a relationship. She didn't want some man tying her down, and I understood what she meant. But I guessed I really was old-fashioned in a way, I wanted a guy to sweep me off my feet rather than me telling him to sweep me off my feet. And Shinji was doing just that right now. He was being so gentle, taking extra care when he came to a particularly tough knot. He took his time, running the brush through my hair until only my bangs were left. He went around, facing me, and gently took my chin in one hand. I shut my eyes, hoping that I wouldn't blush as much if I couldn't see him, and he was careful to avoid slashing my face with the hairbrush while fixing my bangs.

After what seemed like forever, I opened my eyes hearing the hairbrush being put down. Shinji looked from putting the hairbrush down, back to me. Our eyes immediately locked with the other's, and I could feel the blood rushing to my cheeks. God if I wasn't blushing maroon by now, I'd be surprised. Shinji moved his hand from my chin to cupping my cheek and smiled one of those genuine smiles at me. I felt my lips curving into a smile but lowered my eyes in slight embarrassment. I couldn't believe that after all my years of having a crush on him, he might actually like me back. His hand felt so cool against my skin, I bet he could really tell that I was blushing.

"Cho?" I looked up at him through my bangs, and he softly stroked my cheek with his thumb.

"Hai Hirako-taicho?" I asked quietly. He smiled softly and said

"Ya know, ya shouldn't be so embarrassed all the time." I swallowed nervously and nodded in agreement.

"I wish I wasn't…" I stopped. He tilted his head to the side slightly, wondering why I'd stopped. "Demo, you make me nervous Hirako-taicho." I admitted. His smile faded off his face, and he looked at me seriously.

"Cho…I don't mean ta make ya nervous." he said, trying to apologize. I shook my head slightly.

"It's not your fault." I whispered "Please don't blame yourself." He smiled again and said

"You look…so beautiful when you blush." I felt myself blushing darker, and he leaned in slightly closer. "You've got so much talent, intelligence, you're so kind. I don't know why any man wouldn't want to be with you."

I felt my breath catch in my throat, realizing he wasn't using any slang at all. That was a major change, and by him not using slang his words presented themselves in a different way. It showed me, that he was serious about every single word he spoke. And maybe…that he really did like me. He was so close now, so close to my face. Barely an inch away, I could feel his hot breath against my skin.

"You're so beautiful Cho." I opened my mouth, trying to get anything to come out. Any words at all, but silence instead. "Just tell me if you want me to stop." I closed my eyes, waiting to feel his lips against mine. Just when I felt his breath against my lips, there was a knock at the door.

_**Fuckin' hell! You were so close!**_

"Damn it." Shinji cursed quietly. I opened my eyes, slightly disappointed. I'd wanted that kiss for the longest time, and now I was going to have to wait even longer to get it. "Nani?"

"Hirako-taicho, we need to leave for the meeting." Aizen said from outside the door.

"Fine, I'll be out in a sec." Shinji said, sounding annoyed. He looked back at me, and I smiled slightly.

"We should probably go." I said, not able to hide my disappointment. He nodded, looking disappointed as well, and moved back from me. I quickly stood up and walked around his desk. I slid the door open and looked back at Shinji. He smiled at me, his real smile, and said

"I'll meet ya outside my office a hour before the fireworks start." I nodded in agreement and walked out of Shinji's office. I looked at Aizen standing beside the door, before I made myself slide the door shut. I glared at Aizen and turned on my heel, walking down the hallway. I felt something enclose around my wrist and looked back to see a smirking Aizen.

"Nagataka-san." he played

"Nani?" I snapped, jerking my arm out of his grip. His amused smirk turned into an annoyed frown, and he glared darkly at me. I felt my stomach tighten, and he said

"You should be more careful, you might get yourself devoured." I swallowed hard and forced myself to not sound afraid, even though I really was terrified. I was more curious than scared though.

"By?" I asked curiously. His lips curved back into that amused smile of his, and he said

"Now Nagataka-san, if I told you then where's the surprise?" I raised an eyebrow.

"I suppose you're right Aizen-fukutaicho." I crossed my arms over my chest and gave him the calmest look I could muster. "Demo I'm not afraid of you." I lied. His eyes locked with mine, searching for the lie; I made sure he wouldn't be able to see it. "It's been nice talking to you Aizen-fukutaicho, but I need to go training now." I said, seeing Shinji come out of his office. "Have fun at your meeting." I quickly turned and continued my journey down the hallway. Aizen wasn't going to jerk me around, if he wanted a new player in his little game then I was more than happy to oblige. I was going to figure him out, and I'd make sure he wouldn't be able to stop me.

**Author's Note: Gah, so close. I have a feeling people were rather angry with this chapter, but fear not kiddies. The romance is just getting starting, and it'll be getting a ton better from here on...as you can already tell. I would also like to thank you guys for reviewing so nicely about the last chapter. I'm feeling very good about everything I'm writing now. Okays, but I'm done with the rambling so here's the drill. No reviews, no update. I'm gonna up it to seven so listen carefully. SEVEN REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER! Thanks for reading, oh and here's your motivation to review.**

_PREVIEW_

_I'd cut him across the cheek. He glared swinging at me, barely nicking my arm. I jumped up, bring my sword down. He blocked as expected, and I used that moment to kick him in the side of the face. He went flying but planted his hand on the ground, helping him land on his feet. I ran at him, Zanpakuto raised and made contact with his. Then were glaring at each other, and damn was it intense. We both jumped back, and he lunged at me with his Zanpakuto. I smirked sadistically and grabbed his Zanpakuto with my bare hand. His eyes widened..._


	11. Chapter Eleven: Battle Between Friends

CLICK, CLICK, CLICK, CLICK, CLICK, CLICK!

I parried an attack from Taiga's wooden katana and watched as he jumped in the air, katana raised. I used shunpo to dodge and appeared behind him. I faked a stab to his stomach and assaulted his knees with the hilt of the wooden katana.

"Ah fuck." he cursed. He quickly recovered from my attack and elbowed me hard in the ribs. I grunted in pain but ignored it, quickly pulling out a round-a-bout kick to the side of his face. My foot made contact, and damn did he go flying. He hit the wall of the room, his katana lying on the ground a few feet away from him. I let out a frustrated breath and stared him down, watching him get to his feet. "Damn Cho-chan, that hurt like hell." he complained. I glared at him, and he backed up a step looking slightly confused as to why I was being such a bitch. I rested my katana on my shoulder and said

"Alright who's next?" I looked around at all the men in the room and let out a loud groan.

'Where the hell are all the chicks. I know one of them would fight me.'

_**Didn't they all mention going to lunch for more gossiping time?**_

_Yeah, that's right. Arigato, I forgot about that._

"Come on!" I groaned. "Who's willing to fight me?" No one said anything, and I paced around the room extremely pissed off. "Come on! I'm a little girl damn it, and all of you are acting like a bunch of little scared bitches. Get your asses out here, and fight me!" I shouted harshly. Everyone seemed to flinch back at my hostility. "Pussys." I mumbled angrily. "Maybe I just need to go to the eleventh squad, they won't be a bunch of scared bitches about fighting a girl." I looked around, still pissed off that no one was willing to fight me, and my eyes locked on Okito. "Okito, fight me." I demanded. He looked shocked, very shocked.

"Ano, Cho-chan. Maybe you should take a break. You've been going non-stop without a break." he said, trying not to make me even more angry

"Bullshit." I said annoyed. "I'm perfectly fine, let's go." He let out sigh and reluctantly took the katana from Taiga. He walked across the floor and faced me.

"Cho-chan, is something wrong?" he asked, getting into a fighting stance.

"No, nothing's wrong. Everything's great, never been better." I snapped, getting into my fighting stance. "Go." He used shunpo, and I easily followed it with my eyes.

'Too slow.' I lazily blocked his attack, dropped to the floor, did a quick swipe towards his feet. Bam, he dropped like a rock. Then my katana was at his throat. Had he gotten worse…or was it that I'd gotten _that _much better?

"What the hell was that?" I snapped angrily. "That sucked balls." He looked up at me and grimaced.

"Cho-chan, you've gotten alot better than you think you have." he said, slowly getting to his feet. "Fighting me isn't going to be a challenge for you anymore." I pursed my lips angrily and looked across the room at everyone.

"Fine." I mumbled annoyed. "Emori!" His head snapped up when I said his name, and I nodded towards the katanas. "Fight me."

"I don't want to." he said bluntly, now that pissed me off even more.

"Excuse me?" I asked annoyed. He glared at me, not intending to get up.

_**That fuckin' pussy.**_

_Agreed._

"I said I don't want to." he repeated. "Got a hearing problem or something Cho?" I glared back at him, only mine was much more menacing looking.

"Fuckin' cunt, get your ass up and fight me you little whore." I shouted, everyone seemed to flinch back even more. They'd never heard me use such harsh language before, I think it might've really scared them.

If you didn't already know, I was pissed off. Aizen was really pissing me off, and he was the only reason I was angry right now. I'd been this close to kissing Shinji, this _fucking_ close and he just had to ruin it. I knew he'd done it on purpose, that asshole was going to pay. What right did he have to keep me from kissing the taicho? Why did he even care? Was he trying to make my life miserable or something? But I was determined to beat him. If I could defeat our third seat that would mean that I'd match a lieutenant in power. Then hopefully I could be able to train with some other squad's lieutenant for a while then quite possibly I could get stronger then Aizen. I was so ready to kick his ass, he'd ruined mine and Shinji's intimate moment. I didn't appreciate that one bit, and I especially didn't appreciate him touching me. It felt so weird, like his hand was still enclosed around my wrist. What right did he have to touch me? I was the daughter of a noble, and what was he compared to that; nothing. I was going to become stronger than him and kick his ass right out of the second seat. His little game would be over soon enough.

"No, I'm not fighting you." he said again, he still looked annoyed. But it seemed like he was trying to soften his look a bit.

"Why the hell not?" I asked, my voice was getting louder. So much louder, I didn't think I'd ever spoken this loudly in my whole life.

"Because I don't want to fight you. I don't feel like it Cho." he explained, still sounding slightly angry.

"Why, afraid you'll lose." I teased, now that set him off.

"Fine, you wanna fight so bad? Let's go." He grabbed his Zanpakuto and unsheathed it. My eyes widened slightly, but I managed to smirk.

_This outta be good. What do you think Kurisutaru?_

_**I agree, he's third seat so we'll have a good battle.**_

I threw the wooden katana at Taiga, and he caught it easily. I walked across the room and grabbed my Zanpakuto. But just because I wasn't facing them, didn't mean I couldn't hear them talking about me.

"Emori what the hell are you thinking? If Hirako-taicho finds out you're fighting with your Zanpakuto without express permission from him-" Okito was saying

"I don't fucking care. I'm tired of her shit, if she wants to fight then she'll get a good fight. Maybe then she'll stop acting like some spoiled noble brat." Emori snapped

"Excuse me?" I snapped, turning around. Calling me a spoiled noble brat was something I just wouldn't take, I wasn't spoiled in the least or a brat. I'd had a very hard life as a noble, and he didn't have the right to judge me just because he thought I had 'everything'. "What did you say?"

"I said you're a spoiled noble brat." he spat angrily. I deepened my glare and unsheathed my Zanpakuto.

_**Time to draw some blood.**_

_Maybe more than blood._

_**Really, whacha thinkin'? Some organs maybe?**_

_I'm deeply considering it._

I didn't even wait to get in my stance, I shunpoed over to him and swung my Zanpakuto at him. He blocked using his own, then we were at each other's throats like a couple of rabid dogs.

CLING, CLASH, CLING, CLASH, CLING, CLASH, CLING, CLASH!

SLIT!

I'd cut him across the cheek. He glared swinging at me, barely nicking my arm. I jumped up, bring my sword down. He blocked as expected, and I used that moment to kick him in the side of the face. He went flying but planted his hand on the ground, helping him land on his feet. I ran at him, Zanpakuto raised and made contact with his. Then were glaring at each other, and damn was it intense. We both jumped back, and he lunged at me with his Zanpakuto. I smirked sadistically and grabbed his Zanpakuto with my bare hand. His eyes widened, I'm pretty sure everyone's in that room did. I kicked him straight in the chin and brought my Zanpakuto towards him. He managed to get away, but I made a nice slice down his chest. My hand was sliced pretty bad though, and it fucking hurt. I ignored it though, the adrenaline rushing through my system seemed to numb the pain away. Blood soaked through his uniform, and he glared at me. I smirked twirling my Zanpakuto by the hilt.

_**Nice going, you're such a bad ass.**_

_Am I? I must've not noticed._

But when he used shunpo, I realized I was screwed. He was faster than I was using shunpo, and I couldn't follow him with my eyes. 'Where'd he-' I felt his reiatsu appear behind me; I was fucked. I turned, but it must've looked like slow motion in his eyes. His Zanpakuto was raised above his head, he began bringing it down. I knew I couldn't dodge, fuck I was screwed. And I knew I wouldn't be able to use my shikai without getting caught, I blinked.

CLASH!

I opened my eyes to see Shinji standing infront of me, his Zanpakuto blocking Emori's.

"Hirako…taicho." I mumbled, now I was definitely fucked.

_**Kuso, this isn't good.**_

_Ya think?_

Emori's eyes widened in shock, and he quickly lowered his Zanpakuto.

"Hirako-taicho." he said quietly

"What the hell do ya'll think yer doin' here?" Shinji barked angrily, neither of us said anything. I lowered my head, letting my bangs fall infront of my eyes. I brought my Zanpakuto infront of me, holding it by the guard. Shinji sheathed his Zanpakuto and looked from me to Emori. "Well?" We still didn't reply. "And what the hell do the rest of ya think yer doin' lettin' them use their Zanpakuto against each other inside, huh?!" he shouted at everyone else in the room. No one said anything, silence filled the room.

This was all my fault because I'd been pissed off, if I hadn't gotten so angry then all this wouldn't have happened. I'd pissed Emori off, and he hadn't been thinking when he'd challenged me with his Zanpakuto. We weren't allowed to use them inside without permission from the taicho, and we had anyway. Now, everyone was going to get introuble because I didn't know how to control my anger. I'd taken it out on all the members of my squad, people who were basically my second family. You never should take your anger out on others, it can hurt their feelings or you'll get everyone in trouble for something you started. I didn't want my squad to get in trouble for something I'd started, so I needed to finish it.

"Hirako-taicho." He looked over at me, and I got on my knees bowing my head to the ground with my Zanpakuto laying infront of me. "Forgive me, it was my fault. I started it all, don't punish everyone for something I've done." I didn't dare look up at his face, that was something I just couldn't let myself see. I didn't want to see the expression on his face when he'd heard all that, I knew he was disappointed in me.

"Cho." I heard him whisper

"Please don't punish everyone else." I repeated. "I was the first to draw my Zanpakuto, and I'm willing to accept the consequences for my actions."

_**What the hell are you doing?**_

_Keeping Emori out of trouble._

_**Why-**_

_I don't know ok. It's my fault, I started all this when I walked in here being a bitch. I'm going to be the one to end it._

I heard Shinji sigh, and he said

"Very well Choyo." he said reluctantly. "We'll discuss your punishment in my office. Let's go." I nodded and glanced up at Shinji through my bangs. He was trying to put on a professional face, but I could tell he was still in shock about it. I grabbed my Zanpakuto and quickly got to my feet avoiding Emori's eyes. I bowed my head and followed Shinji out of the training room. Before we left though, I saw Aizen standing at the door watching me. He had a blank expression on his face, but I could see all sorts of amusement in his eyes. It really pissed me off, but I forced myself to ignore him as I left the room. I glanced up at Shinji, he didn't look back at me as we walked down the hallways of the barracks. I lowered my head, keeping the distance as best I could. I wanted to be close to him though, I wanted him to comfort me and hold me in his arms. I wanted him to tell me everything would be ok, but I knew that wasn't going to happen now. I'd ruined any chance I ever had of being with Shinji.

After what seemed like forever we made it to Shinji's office. He slid the door open and walked inside without looking back at me. I kept my head bent low as I followed him inside and slid the door shut behind me. I walked over to the seat infront of his desk, sat down without a word, and bowed my head. I heard Shinji sit down, and then the awkward silence filled the room.

"Cho." I looked up at him and could just see the disappointment on his face. "Why the hell...I can't begin ta understand why ya'd do somethin' like this." I looked back down, ashamed. "Cho…talk ta me." I felt tears well up in my eyes, but I forced myself to ignore them. I shook my head and squeezed my pants. I could definitely feel that huge cut on my hand now, and it hurt like hell. Blood was gushing out, sinking into my pant-leg. Shinji sighed and opened up a drawer. I heard some rummaging going on, but I didn't look up; I was too ashamed with myself. I continued staring down in my lap and felt his fingers hook under my chin. He tilted my chin up and shook his head seeing the tears running down my cheeks. "Cho, please don't cry." he whispered, I nodded forcing the tears to stop.

"Gomen taicho." I apologized. He sighed to himself and gently took my cut hand. He unhooked the material around my finger and pushed my sleeve up slightly, to keep blood from getting on my sleeve.

"How did this happen?" he asked, carefully cleaning off the blood.

"I grabbed his Zanpakuto with my hand." I answered softly. He chuckled quietly, I looked up to see him shaking his head at me. He looked up into my eyes and grinned amused.

"Cho, that was a stupid thing ta do." he stated, I nodded in agreement; a smile was finally finding its way on my face knowing that Shinji wasn't angry at me.

"I know, I wanted to win though." He rolled his eyes and took the cloth away from my hand. He began gently rapping some bandages around my hand, and I lowered my eyes embarrassed that my taicho was the one taking care of me. He pulled my sleeve back down and looked up into my eyes. His eyes searched mine, looking for some reason as to why I would do something like this, and he finally looked away. He stood up from his crouched position on the floor and walked back around to his desk, putting the remaining bandages back in the drawer.

"You didn't do it." he stated looking up at me.

_**HA! I knew that he knew you didn't do it.**_

I nodded, agreeing with him.

"Then tell me who started it." I shook my head. "Cho if ya don't tell me, I can't help ya. I won't be able ta keep ya outta trouble."

"I know that." I said softly

"Then why won't ya tell me who started it?" he asked confused, I shrugged to myself.

"I feel like it's my fault. I was frustrated and took out all my anger on my team; I shouldn't have done that. And I feel like I need to take responsibility for it all." I explained, looking back at the floor.

"Cho, don't do this ta yerself. Don't blame yerself fer something that wasn't yer fault." he asked of me, I looked up at him sitting behind his desk and our eyes locked. I really did want to tell him the truth, but I didn't want Emori to get in trouble. I'd broken his heart just last night, and I needed for the universe to repay me for hurting someone. I believed this should be my punishment.

"Hirako-taicho she didn't do it!" a voice shouted bursting into the room. I looked back to see Emori standing there panting. "She…I…started it Hirako-taicho. Don't report Cho…she wasn't the one."

"Emori." I said shocked that he was actually taking the blame. "Don't-"

"No, I screwed up. I was angry you were acting like a bitch, and I shouldn't have pointed my blade at you. This is my fault, I'm taking responsibility for it." he interrupted looking back at Shinji. "Please Hirako-taicho." I looked back at Shinji, and he nodded.

"Arigato fer confessing Emori. Cho, yer free ta go." Shinji said, looking at me

"Demo Hirako-taicho-" I started

"Cho, go on. I'll talk ta ya later, kay?" he ordered, but he still tried to make it sound like he wasn't angry at me. I sighed but nodded anyway, I didn't want to disobey him. I stood up and headed out of the office. I looked at Emori and smiled slightly.

"Arigato Emori-kun." I said sweetly; he nodded with a blank expression on his face. I quickly hugged him and walked out of Shinji's office. I slid the door shut and headed down the hallway back to the training room. I needed to apologize to everyone.

_**I can't believe he confessed.**_

_He must've felt really bad._

_**As long as things are ok with you and Shinji then nothing else matters.**_

_Sure…ok…I'm confused._

_**Eh, you're always confused.**_

_Shut it!_

I slid the door open, and everyone's eyes went to me. "Gomen everyone. I didn't mean to take all my anger out on you, it wasn't right of me. Please forgive me." I said bowing my head. There was silence for a moment, and I felt a pair of strong arms rap around me. I smiled slightly and hugged Taiga back. "Gomen." I repeated

"It's fine Cho, we're good." he said softly

"Yeah, don't blame yourself." Okito said "It was really noble of you to try to take the blame for Emori's mess-up."

"We forgive you." Taiga said. I smiled slightly and let out a sigh. Thankfully all of this was fixed now, and tonight I'd be able to watch the fireworks with Shinji. Hopefully nothing else would go wrong today, I didn't think I'd be able to stand it.

**Author's Note: Haha, so. Now you all know what Cho's like when she's angry like that, Aizen's so good at pushing her buttons. He's such a creep, but this chapter is very important to future chapters. I won't say what, but it this chapter there's a _very_ subtle clue as to why Aizen's so interested in Cho. I won't ruin what it is, but for those of you who manage to figure it out good job. Thank you all for the lovely reviews from the last chapter, it seems as though I'm getting a bunch more quite faster than I used to. I guess you lot are really getting excited for ShinjiXCho action huh? Ok, well. Drill time, I'm upping the reviews since this chapter is the one you've all been waiting for. We shall know what'll happen with Shinji and Cho's relationship next chapter. Whether they'll be together or not, I mean. So TEN REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER. This is a one time thing too, I won't be asking for 10 reviews for any other chapter, this one's just important so...yeah. Preview time =]**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_"Cho-chan?" I looked over at Shinji to find his face so close to mine, about two inches away._

_"Hai? Hirako-taicho." I said nervously. He glanced down but moved his eyes back up to mine._

_"Cho, 'bout what happened in my office taday…" he started. I nodded, wondering what he was going to say about it. Hopefully he didn't regret it, because I sure didn't. "Gomen…I just…I didn't mean ta put ya in a situation like that. It's just-"_

_"Taicho." He stopped rambling, and I smiled slightly. "There's no need to apologize." I whispered. He looked at me relieved, but he also looked confused._

_"Demo…" He stopped, I was starting to think he'd lost grasp of whatever he'd been planning to say. Maybe it'd be best if I was the one who started talking, he seemed awfully nervous._

_"Taicho…I apologize for being so forward…demo…_


	12. Chapter Twelve: Fireworks Festival

I knocked on the door to Shinji's office, it was an hour before the fireworks started. I was so excited that I was going to be watching them with him, but I hoped everything that had happened earlier in the day wouldn't affect how he saw me now. That was really the only thing I was worried about.

"Come in Cho." he said knowing it was me, I smiled to myself. I guessed it wouldn't affect how he saw me. I slid the door open and walked into his office, not bothering to close the door since we'd be leaving in a few minutes anyway. I smiled when I saw him, and he chuckled seeing my smile. "Konbanwa." he said with an amused tone. I giggled to myself and walked closer to his desk.

"Konbanwa Hirako-taicho." I said sweetly

"I'm just finishing up this paperwork." he explained shuffling papers around on his desk. I smiled slightly and nodded.

"Is Emori in big trouble?" I asked quietly. He looked up at me and smiled a little.

"He'll be fine. The most he's gettin' is a ton of paperwork." he replied. I nodded, twiddling my fingers. "Eh fuck this. I'll do it later." I giggled, and he stood up throwing the paperwork down on his desk. "I guess we better go, or all the good spots 'ill be gone." I nodded in agreement and followed him out of his office. He slid the door shut, and we walked down the hallway of the barracks together.

I looked down, knowing my cheeks were likely a deep red, and licked my lips nervously. Why I was nervous, I had no idea. I'd spent plenty of time with Shinji, hell, we'd almost kissed. I didn't understand why I was always so nervous around him, but it was a good type of nervous. I loved being around him, he made me feel complete. I felt like I could be myself around him, and I knew he wouldn't judge me. And my heart always seemed like it was dancing around in my chest, he was always on my mind, and when I didn't see him it made me sad. What the hell was this feeling?

_**It's called love dear one.**_

_Kurisutaru, I don't understand._

I heard her sigh inside my head.

_**That one feeling that-**_

_I know what love is damn it. I just don't understand how…how can I be in love with him?_

_**That's something I can't tell you.**_

_Why not?_

_**You have to figure it out on your own. That's just how love is.**_

_Some help you are._

_**I'm plenty of help, but this is something I just can't help you with.**_

_Demo-_

_**Nope, I'm not talking anymore.** _

_Nande?_

_**This is your night with Shinji, and you have some thinking to do…so have fun.**_

I inwardly groaned at the fact that she didn't want to help me. I actually wanted her help, and she was just being a selfish bitch. She was such an annoyance. I looked at Shinji walking beside me and smiled to myself. He just made me so happy, but I didn't understand if I could be in love with him. Was that even possible for me? To be in love with someone after just a few months?

I shook my head of the thoughts and looked around at my surroundings. I was so confused as to where he was taking me, I had no clue where I was really even going. Apparently Shinji did though because he continued taking all sorts of turns, he didn't even stop to think about it. He'd definitely went this way before, most likely many different times.

"Cho?"

"Huh?" I stopped and looked at Shinji curiously. He grinned, what was he thinking? "Nani Hirako-taicho?"

"Close yer eyes." he said, still grinning. I tilted my head to the side and smiled slightly.

"How come?" I asked sweetly

"You'll see." he said mischievously. I giggled and shook my head.

"Nope, you have to tell me first." I said smiling, he shook his head still grinning

"Nu uh, now close yer eyes." I made a face at him, scrunching up my nose. "It's a surprise Cho-chan." he said softly. I felt my cheeks heat up hearing the suffix added to my name and looked down blushing. I nodded, quickly shutting my eyes. I felt something being placed over my eyes, and I played with a strand of my hair thinking. I felt him take my hands, and I could tell I was at least blushing blood red by now. It felt nice holding his hands though, like my hands were meant to be in his. I blushed at the thought and felt Shinji leading me somewhere. Where were we going?

"Hirako-taicho?" I mumbled

"Hai Cho-chan?" he asked, my face was growing hotter by the second.

"Ano…where are we going exactly?" I asked, I heard him chuckle.

"It's my own secret spot." he answered. I nodded, understanding why I couldn't know the way now.

"You just _had _to blindfold me though?" I asked sarcastically, now _that_ made him laugh.

"Hai Cho-chan. It's a secret, and I can't have people knowin' my secret." he said easily. "Plus…ya coulda decided ta peak." I smiled saying

"I wouldn't do that."

"Uh huh." he said, not believing me in the least

"Ok…it would've been tempting, but I wouldn't have looked. You would've just had to tell me that it was a secret before we went on our way." He laughed, and I felt my cheeks heating up again. He led me all over the place for a good ten minutes (I guessed), and we finally stopped walking. "Can I have my eyes back yet?" I teased, Shinji laughed.

"Fine, sit down. Be careful though." I nodded and carefully sat down. It felt like I was sitting in grass, I smiled feeling Shinji's reiatsu behind me. I giggled quietly feeling him untying the blindfold, and his fingers brushed my cheek. I felt my face burning, god how did he manage to make me feel this way? The blindfold was finally off, and I opened my eyes to find the most beautiful place imaginable.

It was like some fairy-tale, swan-lake type thing. No joke, swan-lake. Only it was more of a pond than a lake, with all sorts of beautiful flowers. Sakura petals were all floating on top of the water from where all the Sakura trees were blooming. The field around us had all sorts of different types of flowers, so many trees. God, I couldn't begin to explain how glorious it all was. And it was a good distance from Seireitei, so we had a clear view of the sky. There was no buildings in our way, we had the perfect view of everything. This was a great place to watch the sunset, then the stars would come out, and soon after that the fireworks would start.

I looked at Shinji sitting beside me, and he looked over at me grinning.

"What do ya think Cho-chan?" he asked smiling. My smile widened as I took another look around the place.

"It's so beautiful Hirako-taicho." I replied "Arigato for bringing me here with you." I looked back at him, and he smiled.

"I was happy ta share my secret with ya." he said, sounding slightly amused with me. I looked up at the sky and smiled watching all sorts of colors streak across the sky. This place was so beautiful, I never thought such a place could exist.

I looked over at Shinji, and he smiled serenely while watching the sunset. I felt the smile on my face widen, and I looked back towards the sky enjoying the moment. I wasn't able to keep my thoughts focused on how beautiful everything was out here, my thoughts were too busy thinking about Shinji. Not that I minded at all, Shinji was amazing. The more I thought about him, the more I realized how perfect he was for me. And after everything that had happened in the past two days, I knew that he had the same type of feelings towards me. We were all alone now, no one could interrupt us or ruin our moment. But I needed to wait for the right moment, yes the sunset was very beautiful but it wasn't the best time for me to take action. The fireworks would definitely be the best moment to do something…but what to do? I couldn't kiss him just like that, right?

'Urg, I wouldn't be having this problem if Kurisutaru hadn't decided to leave me all alone. I could ask her for advice…but I know she wouldn't give me any right now. To a point I'm happy that she's given me some privacy, but to another I'm scared shitless. I'm, for the first time, completely alone with Shinji. There's no thoughts going on in my head, no interruptions, no one going to walk in on us…we're all alone…oh my. I hadn't thought of it that way until now…great.'

I took a deep breath, watching the sky grow darker, and glanced over at Shinji. He wasn't all that far away from me, about two…maybe three feet. I still felt like he was too far away though, so I scooted slightly closer to him. He immediately noticed the movement, but he still smiled at me. Now I was sitting right beside him, and I felt so much more comfortable. Being this close to him made me feel so at ease, and I felt so safe when I was with him. Even when Aizen was around, if I was with Shinji I didn't care because I knew I would be safe.

He was like my own angel, watching over me and guarding me. Even though he didn't show that he knew how safe he made me feel, I think he still had an idea. I didn't ever think anyone would make me feel this way, and to be honest I didn't think anyone ever _could _make me feel this way. Shinji was different, a bit of a goofball and extremely funny, but he was so much more. He was a very intelligent man, he was perceptive, and aware of people's feelings. He had such a softer, more sensitive side that people didn't know about. And that's what I liked about him, the fact that he could make me laugh and that he knew how I was feeling. He knew how to be gentle with someone, and that's how he was towards me…gentle.

"They're startin'." Shinji mumbled. I smiled and looked up into the sky. Fireworks were shooting up one after another. Their colors were blending, the fireworks were taking on different shapes, it was all just so beautiful. This was such an amazing moment, and it was the perfect moment for me to tell Shinji how I felt. Yeah, I'd told him he made me nervous but I needed to clarify what type of nervous it was. The good nervous, rather than the bad nervous. I needed to somehow start a conversation, but I really didn't know what to say that would get onto the subject of _us_.

'What the heck, I'll just talk about whatever comes to mind first.' I watched another firework explode, lighting the sky up with blue and green. Now these things were definitely distracting me from what I needed to do. I couldn't help it though, the fireworks were gorgeous.

"Wow." I muttered "It's so beautiful." I felt something touch my hand and looked down to see Shinji's hand resting on-top of mine. I felt my cheeks getting warm and looked over at Shinji. He moved his eyes from the sky to me and the wind blew past us, whipping my hair around my face. Shinji smiled slightly and entwined his fingers with mine, before pulling me closer to him. I blushed feeling his arms go around my waist from behind me, and I leaned against him looking up at the fireworks.

"Cho-chan?" I looked over at Shinji to find his face so close to mine, about two inches away.

"Hai? Hirako-taicho." I said nervously. He glanced down but moved his eyes back up to mine.

"Cho, 'bout what happened in my office taday…" he started. I nodded, wondering what he was going to say about it. Hopefully he didn't regret it, because I sure didn't. "Gomen…I just…I didn't mean ta put ya in a situation like that. It's just-"

"Taicho." He stopped rambling, and I smiled slightly. "There's no need to apologize." I whispered. He looked at me relieved, but he also looked confused.

"Demo…" He stopped, I was starting to think he'd lost grasp of whatever he'd been planning to say. Maybe it'd be best if I was the one who started talking, he seemed awfully nervous.

"Taicho…I apologize for being so forward…demo…" I stopped, fuck. This wasn't good, I couldn't get myself to say it. How the hell was I supposed to tell him that I had feelings for him? I glared at the ground and looked up into Shinji's eyes. He stared right back into mine, I could feel my heart pounding against my chest, it was getting harder to breathe, and it felt like all my limbs were going numb. Just the way he was staring into my eyes, it was so entrancing. I felt like…I was floating. I couldn't explain this feeling except that it was amazing, and I never wanted it to stop. My eyes flicked from his, to his lips, back up to his eyes. I hoped he'd gotten the message, I didn't know how else to say it…besides actually saying it. I didn't think I'd be able to say it out loud either.

Another group of fireworks went off, and Shinji gently cupped my cheek with his hand. I smiled slightly and leaned my cheek into his touch. It felt so nice, so right. I glanced up from the ground back to Shinji's eyes, and he leaned in closer to me. I took a breath, still gazing into his eyes, and finally. After waiting for what seemed like a hundred years, his lips pressed against mine.

It felt like my heart leaped out of my chest, and all rationality seemed but a distant memory. I couldn't think, my mind had gone completely blank. There was nothing, absolutely nothing. I couldn't hear the fireworks, I couldn't feel the wind blowing against my skin, none of it was there to me. The only thing that was real to me, was Shinji. And that's when I decided that nothing mattered. I didn't care anymore, there were laws saying I had to be with a noble. So what? I'd bypass those laws, I didn't care what I'd have to do. I'd change my name, I'd change my looks, I'd disown my family. Anything to be with him, I loved him. And nothing was going to take him from me.

I smiled in happiness and pressed my lips back again his. It was such a soft, gentle kiss. It was amazing, just exactly like I'd imagined so many times. He stroked my cheek with his thumb, still kissing me, and I put my hand at the base of neck. When we finally parted he leaned his forehead against mine and looked up at me. I felt a blush all over my face, but I didn't care. I'd finally gotten the kiss I'd been wanting forever. I stared back into Shinji's eyes, and he smiled softly.

"Cho-chan." he said quietly. I felt my blush darken and said nervously

"Hai Hirako-taicho?" He rubbed my cheek with his thumb again and ran his fingers through my white hair.

"Why the hell do ya hafta be so goddamn perfect?" he asked, sounding annoyed. I felt my heart drop, did he really just say that? Was he angry with me? "Yer gonna get me in so much trouble." I lowered my eyes, I'd definitely fucked up. I heard him chuckle, and I looked back up into his eyes; I'd thought he was angry with me. He chuckled again, rubbing my cheek with his thumb. "Yer worth it. Yer worth every bit of trouble I get in, I'm not givin' ya up." I felt my lips stretch into a smile, and he kissed my forehead.

"Hirako-taicho?" He smiled, showing me he was paying attention to me. "I don't want to get you in trouble." I mumbled. What the hell was I doing? I'd finally gotten what I wanted, and I was afraid to keep him because I didn't want his life to get all complicated just for me.

"I don't care 'bout it." he said softly "Yer mine now Nagataka Choyo, I wouldn't give ya up for nothin." I smiled and nodded.

"Ok…Hirako-taicho?" He smiled again, and I felt my cheeks heat up. "Will you kiss me again?" He chuckled to himself and put his arm back around my waist. He pulled me so my back was against his leg, and I was facing him.

"I'll kiss ya as much as ya want Cho-chan." he said, caressing my face. I smiled feeling his lips press against mine and closed my eyes. Tonight was the best night of my life, and there was no way I would let anyone ruin my happiness. Not my parents, not my friends, and especially not Aizen.

**Author's Note: Yay! It's official. Cho and Shinji are finally together! I've been waiting to write this chapter since I started the story so I was especially giggly and awwing while I was writing it, and when I was proof reading it as well. It's just so cute, and I loved writing this. But now that the relationship is officials, some complications and drama is bound to come up...right? I'll leave it all a mystery. Thanks for all the reviews from the last chapter kiddies, I know you're all excited now about being together and curious about what's going to happen. So here we go, downing the reviews. EIGHT REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER! Oh and here's your motivation for reviewing.**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_Shinji grinned again and motioned me closer. _

_"Hirako-taicho!" I whined "Not here."_

_"Cho-chan, I haven't seen ya all mornin'. " he complained_

_"Demo-"_

_"Please!" I groaned slightly, but it was a fake groan. I loved it that he wanted to spend more time with me, hugging was a little dangerous but I knew Shinji didn't care. He wasn't afraid of getting in trouble for me, and I was the one that was worried. I knew all that would happen to me was getting yelled at by my father, but Shinji would get the worst end of the deal. I didn't really know what would happen to him, but I knew it would be bad. And I knew that if I went over to him right now, we'd wind up kissing. Even if I didn't want to (because I didn't want us getting caught) I knew we would because I was just that attracted to him. Everything about him was perfect for me, and there was no way I could stop myself from wanting to be with him._

_I set my paperwork on the chair infront of his desk and walked around his desk to him._


	13. Chapter Thirteen: A Relationship Begins

I skipped down the hallway of the barracks and sighed contently; last night had been the most amazing night of my life. Shinji had finally told me he had feelings for me, I told him I had feelings for him, and we kissed. All in one night, it was so amazing. I hadn't went home that night either, Shinji and I had stayed out until…well…sunrise this morning. That's when we had left though, but not before he gave me another amazing kiss. After that I had went home to get a shower and a change of clothes. Miyo had been sleeping so I hadn't got to tell her what had happened, and I hadn't heard from Kurisutaru since before the fireworks started last night so I hadn't got to tell anyone about me and Shinji. Not that I really wanted to tell anyone, I was pretty happy having a secret all to myself. But I knew that my and Shinji's relationship would spread all over Soul Society once our squad found out about it. So I was going to keep our relationship a secret for now.

I let out another happy sigh and skid to a stop infront of the training room. I hadn't seen Shinji since I'd gotten back to Seireitei so I was slightly upset, but I knew there was training to be done. I'd get to see Shinji later, I always saw him at least twice in one day. I slid open the door to the training room, and Hina looked away from the window. She smiled at me and I skipped into the room, shutting the door behind me.

"Ohayou Hina-chan!" I sang. She giggled amused.

"Ohayou Cho-chan." she said "You seem to be in a very good mood."

"I'm in an amazing mood." I admitted, sitting down on the floor

"Even after what happened yesterday?" she asked, pulling her hair into a ponytail. Great, now Hina knew.

"I didn't mean to get like that." I admitted "Looking back on it, I get so angry at myself."

"The guys told me you were swearing, calling people whore and bitch. It really surprised me, and then you were fighting like no tomorrow. Then the Zanpakuto? What the hell?" she ranted, getting even more upset

"Hina-chan. Please don't be angry with me." I asked of her "I feel so bad about it all."

"I just can't believe that my sweet little Cho-chan can be a complete bitch." she said, scratching the back of her head "It really surprised me."

"Hina give it a rest." Okito said walking in. I smiled at Okito, thankful that he had come to my rescue. "Cho-chan wasn't herself yesterday." Hina nodded, and I hopped to my feet to give Okito a hug.

"How are you this morning?" I asked sweetly, he grinned ruffling my hair.

"Ok, waiting for everyone else to get here." he replied

"Taiga and Emori still aren't here?" Hina asked, Okito nodded.

"Yeah, it's pretty lame." he said. We all sat down in the floor together, and I played with my hair a bit. "Did you guys see the fireworks last night?"

"Yep." Hina and I said in unison. I giggled a bit, and Hina pulled out her mirror.

"My little brother was driving me nuts though." she complained, checking her makeup. "He was dragging me all over the place. He didn't want to sit still at all." She powdered her face a bit, and I rolled my eyes amused. "I didn't see you though Okito." He shrugged, taking his hat off his head.

"Eh, I was with Emori the whole time." he told us "I'd have rather spent time with you, he was complaining so much."

"About what?" I asked curiously "The whole incident?" He shook his head.

"If you're talking about yesterday then no, but he _was _complaining about you though." he said, I lowered my head knowing what he was talking about.

"What about Cho-chan?" Hina asked "What happened with you two?" She prodded my arm, and I let out a sigh.

"It's nothing really. We just…had a difference of opinion on something." I said quietly. I pulled my knees to my chest, putting my head atop my knees.

"A difference of opinion?" Hina repeated "What do you mean?" I stared at the wall, not really wanting to answer her, and Okito said

"Hina drop it."

"Demo-"

"Hina." She nodded, not saying anything else about it. "So…what'd you do last night Cho-chan?" Okito asked, breaking the awkward silence. I smiled slightly and said

"I watched the fireworks, just like everyone else." He nodded, and Hina said

"Ooo! Guess what Cho-chan!" I looked at her, waiting for the gossip to come rolling off her tongue.

"Hai Hina-chan?" I asked. I heard the doors open, but Hina didn't seem to notice. When she wanted to gossip, then she gossiped. Enough said.

"So you know that dreadful fourteenth seat in squad twelve right?" she asked, I nodded. "Well I found out that she's-"

"God Hina, gossiping this early?" Taiga teased. She glared at him for interrupting.

"I am, got a problem with it?" she snapped. He chuckled, and Emori rolled his eyes.

"No Hina-chan, keep going." he said nonchalantly. She wrinkled her brow annoyed and said

"Ya know what? No, I'm not going to. You guys just pissed me off." I giggled, twirling a strand of hair around my finger. This was gonna be real good.

"We always piss you off Hina." Taiga said amused

"That's fucking right." she said angrily "And I'm not gonna deal with it anymore."

"Oh brother." Okito mumbled "Hina, just shut up."

"Why don't you make me you ass." she shouted. I cringed slightly and quickly stood up, wanting to avoid listening to them.

"Maybe I will, you wanna fight?" Okito said, acting hostile

"Yeah, let's go." Hina demanded

"I have to go get my paperwork for this week." I said to Taiga, he smiled knowing I wanted to get away from the argument.

"Alright Cho-chan, just don't come back pissed off again." he teased, I rolled my eyes.

"I won't, I promise." I said sweetly. He smiled, and I walked out of the training room hearing wooden katanas clicking. Of course Hina and Okito were fighting, they always did that to get out their rage. I was waiting for the two of them to get together though, they obviously liked each other. They just didn't want to admit it. I slid the door shut and walked down the hallway of the fifth squad's barracks. I let out a sigh and scratched my head thinking about Shinji.

I hoped he wasn't too busy when I got there, I was really wanting some alone time with him right now. No, not just to kiss. I wanted to talk to him about my family, eventually I would need to tell my father I had a boyfriend. If I didn't, he'd end up having me engaged to some noble and I really didn't want something like that to happen. I didn't think it'd be soon though, I could most likely get away with dating Shinji for a month or two before I had to tell my parents. The only thing that was complicated about it was I wasn't allowed to date a taicho, it was against noble laws…unless the taicho was a noble…which Shinji wasn't. How great was that?

I stopped infront of Shinji's office and lightly knocked.

"Nani?" he asked, sounding annoyed. I shook my head to myself, realizing he was most likely frustrated by all the paperwork he had, and slid open the door to his office. He looked up from a mountain of paperwork, and I cringed slightly. No wonder he sounded so grumpy. "Cho-chan." I smiled slightly, shutting the door.

"Konnichiwa Hirako-taicho. Ano…is this a bad time?" I asked, still grimacing a bit. He smiled, shaking his head.

"Nah, I need ta take a break anyway." he said grinning. I smiled and walked closer to his desk.

"I actually need to pick up my paperwork for this week." I said, twirling a strand of my hair around my index finger. He let out a sigh and went looking through the paperwork.

"Yer just like me when it comes ta paperwork. Ya leave it till last minute." he mumbled. I giggled, shrugging a bit.

"It's boring, but it really doesn't take that long to do." I replied sweetly

"Unless ya have a forest of it." he grumbled, I giggled again. He said "Ah ha, there it is." He grabbing the folder, handing me my paperwork. "Ya know it's due fer later taday, right." I nodded.

"I know, but it'll be done in a couple hours." I said smiling. Shinji grinned again and motioned me closer. "Hirako-taicho!" I whined "Not here."

"Cho-chan, I haven't seen ya all mornin'. " he complained

"Demo-"

"Please!" I groaned slightly, but it was a fake groan. I loved it that he wanted to spend more time with me, hugging was a _little_ dangerous but I knew Shinji didn't care. He wasn't afraid of getting in trouble for me, and I was the one that was worried. I knew all that would happen to me was getting yelled at by my father, but Shinji would get the worst end of the deal. I didn't really know what would happen to him, but I knew it would be bad. And I knew that if I went over to him right now, we'd wind up kissing. Even if I didn't want to (because I didn't want us getting caught) I knew we would because I was just that attracted to him. Everything about him was perfect for me, and there was no way I could stop myself from wanting to be with him.

I set my paperwork on the chair infront of his desk and walked around his desk to him. He smiled, placing his arms around my waist, and pulled me to sit on his lap. I smiled slightly and laid my head against his shoulder, snuggling close to him. He smelled so good this morning…did he always smell this good or was it just me? I glanced up at him through my bangs to see him grinning at me, I felt a blush spreading all over my cheeks.

"Cho-chan?" he said softly. I swallowed before saying

"Hai Hirako-taicho?" He rolled his eyes and said amused

"Can't ya use my first name?" I smiled slightly, shaking my head. "Nande?"

"Because I might slip up and say your first name around the wrong people." I explained, he rolled his eyes again.

"Cho, I already told ya I don't care 'bout gettin introuble. Yer worth it." he said smiling at me

"Demo-"

"Ah." He put a finger to my lips, stopping my thoughts. "When it's you and me, it's Shinji. Kay?" I nodded, staring up into his eyes. He grinned at me, moving his finger from my lips, and used that hand to cup my cheek. I felt a smile come to my lips and he leaned closer to me, pressing his lips to my forehead. I wrinkled my nose, he wasn't being nice.

"Hirako-I mean…Shinji." His grin widened, and I felt my cheeks growing warmer.

"Nani Cho-chan?"

"Ano…will you kiss me?" I asked shyly, he chuckled.

"Why're ya askin' me?" he asked amused "Ya have the right ta kiss _me_, ya know." I nodded, knowing my blush was brick red by now.

"I just…I don't…I don't know. Why're you asking me?" I asked, confused with my own thoughts. He laughed, and I hid my face in his haori. I glanced up, seeing him shaking his head in amusement. I moved my hand upward slightly, running my fingers through his long blonde hair. He watched me for a second before he lifted my chin, capturing my lips with his. I smiled, feeling my eyes slip shut, and kissed him back. He pushed me a little closer to him, holding me in his arms. It felt so nice, just like the first time we'd kissed. It was soft and gentle...and careful? I placed my arms around his neck, wanting the moment to last forever, but I knew I'd have to be the one to end the kiss. I pulled my face away from his and opened my eyes, to find him looking at me disappointed.

"Nani Cho-chan?" he asked, running his fingers through my hair

"I need to talk to you about something." I told him. He nodded, still playing with my hair. "Hirako-I mean Shinji. About my parents…" I stopped, and he sighed.

"Don't tell me, they're set on ya marryin' some noble." he guessed, I shrugged.

"I really don't know, but most likely…yeah." I said quietly. "I just…need to tell them about you, but I don't know when...or how for that matter."

"Why not tell 'em taday?" he asked, moving his hand from my hair to my cheek. I leaned my cheek closer into his hand and let out a sigh.

"It wouldn't be a good idea since Miyo's wedding is next month." I said, looking up into his eyes. He stared back into mine for a moment before lightly kissing my lips. I felt my eyes slip halfway shut, and he hovered above my lips.

"Tell 'em whenever ya thinks the right time Cho-chan." he whispered, pressing his lips back against mine. I nodded slightly, pressing my lips against his. He just tasted so good, like my own personal drug. I never wanted to stop kissing him. I heard a knock at the door, and I froze; shit we were caught. I opened my eyes quickly finding Shinji's; he held me close, grinning that same smile. He wasn't going to let me go, and he'd be the reason we got caught. He was such a bastard…but that's what I loved about him.

"Nani?" he said angrily

"Ano…Hirako-taicho I-" Aizen started, not opening the door

"What the hell do ya want Sousuke?" Shinji snapped "I'm kinda busy." I suppressed a giggle, and Shinji smirked down at me. He kissed the side of my face, and I bit down on my lower lip smiling. Aizen said

"It's about the promotion for-"

"God damn it Sousuke, it's goin' through whether ya agree ta it or not." Shinji interrupted "Now get ta deliverin' those reports, and leave me the hell alone. I have my own fuckin' paperwork ta deal with." I covered my mouth to stop my giggle, and Shinji went back to running his fingers through my hair.

"Hai Hirako-taicho. Gomen." Aizen apologized. I heard his footsteps get softer and looked back at Shinji.

"That was so mean." I said quietly, Shinji rolled his eyes.

"Like I care." he said "Sousuke's had somethin' shoved up his ass lately." I nodded in agreement, and he kissed the side of my face again. "Now where were we?" he asked playfully. I giggled again and lightly kissed his lips. He smiled at me and rubbed his nose against mine. "Yer so cute Cho-chan." I felt my cheeks getting hot and leaned my forehead against his.

"Shinji, I need to get working on my paperwork." I said sadly "And you _really_ need to get caught up with yours." He let out a sigh of disappointment, but he nodded agreeing with me.

"I know Cho-chan." he said rubbing my cheek with his thumb "I'll see ya tanight then." I nodded in agreement, knowing he wanted to take me to dinner, and gently pressed my lips against his. He kissed me back, moving his fingers through my snow colored hair. He broke this kiss and I quickly smiled at him, before wiggling out of his arms. I grabbed my paperwork off the chair and looked back at Shinji. He grinned at me and grabbed a file off his desk, continuing with his paperwork. I quickly exited his office and headed down the hallway, thinking of a nice quiet place to work on my paperwork. I finally just jumped onto the roof and sat down. I opened up the folder and let out a sigh, paperwork sure was troublesome.

**Author's Note: Well, I hope you liked the chapter. I know it wasn't really all that exciting, but oh well. You've gotta love Shinji, he's amazing no matter what the chapter's like. As long as he's in it the chapter it good, am I right? Damn Aizen and always interupting everything. Don't you hate him? He he! But anywho, EIGHT REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER. Love you kiddies a ton! And here's your motivation =]**

_PREVIEW_

_"Cho-chan, you look stunning." she said smiling. Everyone stopped talking and turned their heads in my direction._

_"Ano…arigato Lisa-chan." I mumbled, twirling a strand of my hair around a finger._

_"Damn I'm jealous." Hiyori said eyeing me "She's perfect. Got an awesome figure, great boobs…" I felt my cheeks heating up and looked down even more embarrassed._

_"Hiyori." Shinji said "Leave the girl alone." I smiled slightly, and he hugged me tightly. "You look beautiful Cho-chan." I blushed darker and buried my face in his haori._

_"Arigato Shinji-kun."_

_"Nani?" Hiyori snapped "What's goin' on here? You…and her?"_


	14. Chapter Fourteen: Rehearsal Dinner

"Alright I'm finished." I nodded in acknowledgement to the maid and stood up, looking in the mirror. I felt my lips move into a frown, and I let out a sigh. There was no way I was leaving my room with my hair looking like this, it wasn't me in the least. I looked at her and said

"Arigato, I don't really like it though." She grimaced and said quickly

"Choyo-sama, gomen. Allow me to fix your hair differently." I shook my head, taking the hair pieces out. I set them on the dresser and grabbed a hair-bow.

"It's fine." I said sweetly "I'll fix it myself. Don't worry about it."

"Demo Choyo-sama-" she started

"It's fine." I repeated softly. I smiled at her and looked back at my reflection. I pushed my hair over my shoulders infront of my chest and took some of the hair on both sides before pulling it back in a small ponytail, with the rest of it hanging down. I looked at my hair for a second and smiled. "There see, all better." She grimaced again and said

"Gomen."

"It's not a big deal at all. Why don't you go help Miyo get ready, I'm sure she needs help with that dress of hers. And she absolutely loves how you do her hair, I'm pretty sure she wants that flip out at the ends style again." I said smiling. The maid smiled slightly, happy that Miyo thought so much of her, and I quickly moved a few pieces of my hair around. "I'm going to go ahead down in a minute." She nodded, bowed slightly, and exited my room. I sighed to myself and looked at my reflection. I was wearing a very fancy red kimono. I had to admit, it was rather pretty; even though I was never the type of the girl that liked dressing up. Today was the day of my sister's wedding rehearsal, and to be honest I was already bored. These noble things really were just a waste of time, and they were more boring than those pointless classes at the Academy that were mandatory for all students to take. I didn't understand why my parents had to make a big fuss about this thing, why did I even have to dress up in the first place? It wasn't like I was the one getting married.

_**You do have a boyfriend though.**_

I gasped to myself, hearing her voice. Was she really back?

_Kurisutaru?_

_**Who else?**_

I smiled, I never thought I'd miss talking to her.

_Where have you been the past couple days?_

_**Around, listening. I didn't really feel like talking.**_

_Nande? So much has been going on._

_**Ha ha, sounds like someone missed me.**_

I rolled my eyes, why wasn't I surprised at her saying that.

_Big deal, so what if I missed you? I haven't had anyone to talk to._

_**Aw, poor dear. Gomen.**_

_Sure sure. Just don't leave me here all alone again, these nobles are going to attack me._

_**Of course they are, you look gorgeous.**_

_I don't want them attacking me though. I'm with Shinji._

_**They don't know that, have you told anyone?**_

_You._

_**Miss. Secrets.**_

_Mhm, I don't want anyone to know. I want it kept a secret until after Miyo's wedding since it'll probably cause drama._

_**Smart thinking, but you should most likely head downstairs. Hasn't the party started?**_

_Yeah._

_**Then get goin'.**_

I let out a sigh, happy that she'd finally come back, and glided out of my bedroom. I walked down the hallway, somehow managing not to trip over my own feet. Once I reached the staircase, I sighed seeing the entire room filled with people; this was just fantastic. I slowly walked down the stairs, holding up my kimono a bit so I wouldn't trip over it, and held onto the railing so if I _did_ trip I wouldn't tumble headfirst down the stairs. I finally made it to the bottom of the stairs in one piece, but that didn't necessarily mean that I would stay that way. Before I had even taken a step, I was surrounded by a group of nobles. And by nobles I meant boys, tons of boys.

"You look beautiful Choyo."

"That color looks great on you."

"It matches with your eyes."

"Can I get you something to drink?"

"No I will."

"Can I have a dance Choyo-chan?"

"Why the hell would she dance with you?"

I cringed slightly seeing them all yelling at each other, I didn't understand when they'd all become interested in me. Normally all the noble boys ignored me.

_**Because you're gorgeous, that's why.**_

_No, it's because…of course. Miyo's engaged, so she's unavailable to all of them._

_**Not true, it's because you're pretty.**_

_I never thought I'd miss hearing you._

_**How rude, that wasn't very nice Cho.**_

I resisted the urge to roll my eyesand quickly made my escape. I walked through the sea of nobles, saying hi to those that spoke to me, and looked around for a Shinigami. I needed someone from the Gotei 13 to talk to right about now, these nobles were so boring. I didn't think I could stand talking to them anymore. I smiled seeing Hina with Taiga and Emori and walked over to them, avoiding the nobles as best I could.

"Cho-chan!" she exclaimed hugging me "God, you look gorgeous."

"Arigato Hina-chan. You look so much more elegant though." She smiled, of course she'd gotten a black kimono but it had some silver in it which surprised me. Black was usually the only thing she thought went well with her hair.

"Don't sell yourself short Cho-chan." Taiga said annoyed "Alot of the nobles are checking you out, it's pissing me off." I rolled my eyes, giving him a quick hug.

"Don't get angry, they're not even worth your time." I said smiling. He nodded, watching all the nobles. He was acting like an older brother again. Emori smiled at me and I smiled back, hoping that things with us were getting a little better.

"There she is!" I smiled seeing Okito walk over, and he whistled. "Damn Cho-chan, you look drop dead gorgeous." Hina glared slightly, and he rolled his eyes. "Gomen babe." I smiled seeing him put his arm around her waist and giggled to myself. I was so happy they'd finally gotten together after liking each other for so long, they were just a perfect couple.

"Arigato Okito-kun." I looked around, wondering if Shinji was here yet.

"No problem Cho-chan. You really do look beautiful, and no Hina-chan. I don't mean it in _that _way." Okito said kissing Hina's cheek. I smiled at the both of them and continued scanning the room for Shinji.

"Have you all seen Hirako-taicho yet?" I asked "He said he'd be here."

"Not yet." Emori said with a shrug. I looked around a little longer, wondering if there were just too many nobles in the room to find him.

"Oh, I see him." Taiga said, pointing. I smiled seeing Shinji talking with a bunch of taichos and fukutaichos.

"I'm going to go say hi to the taicho. I'll see you guys later. Arigato for coming." I said smiling

"Avoid the nobles at all costs." Emori advised. I nodded in agreement, before walking towards Shinji. He was with the same group of people he normally talked to, I wasn't all that surprised. He was with Hiyori, Love, Kuna Mashiro (who was fukutaicho of the ninth squad), Kensei, Ōtoribashi Rōjūrō (aka Rose taicho of the third squad) and Lisa. They were all talking about something or another, and I saw Hiyori yell at Shinji for who knew what. They were always fighting, but I hoped they realized they couldn't get _too_ physical in my home. Father wouldn't be pleased about that at all, and knowing him they'd be kicked out if they started anything. I really didn't want them getting kicked out. They were all standing in a circle, Shinji's back was to me as I approached. Oh well, I could sneak up on him and attack him with a hug.

"You fucking dickhead." Hiyori snapped, Shinji rolled his eyes (I guessed).

"Shut up dumbass." he groaned. Lisa sighed, shaking her head. She looked up to see me come over.

"Cho-chan, you look stunning." she said smiling. Everyone stopped talking and turned their heads in my direction. Jaws dropped, did I really look _that_ different or something?

_**Yes, you look so grownup…like a little princess.**_

_No, I don't wanna look like a princess._

_**Eh get over it, Shinji likes it.**_

"Ano…arigato Lisa-chan." I mumbled, twirling a strand of my hair around a finger.

"Damn I'm jealous." Hiyori said eyeing me "She's perfect. Got an awesome figure, great boobs…" I felt my cheeks heating up and looked down even more embarrassed. "Her hair's not bad either-"

"Hiyori." Shinji said, interrupting her "Leave the girl alone." I smiled slightly, and he hugged me tightly. "You look beautiful Cho-chan." I blushed darker and buried my face in his haori.

"Arigato Shinji-kun."

"Nani?" Hiyori snapped "What's goin' on here? You…and her? Please, she's too upper-class fer ya." Shinji glared at her, and I giggled amused. I didn't really care if he told his friends, as long as they kept it a secret I was alright with them knowing.

"Awww how cute!" Mashiro cooed "Cho-chan's just so adorable." I felt my blush heating up even more and made myself pull away from Shinji even though I didn't want to. I'd rather enjoyed him holding me, but if any of the nobles saw it before I told my parents about Shinji…let's just say things would get very bad.

"Ano…arigato for coming." I said, still feeling embarrassed. He grinned and said

"I toldja I would, didn't I ?" I nodded, smiling slightly.

"You have quite the nice house." Love said, looking around

"Eh, whatever you say." I said, rubbing my arm

"You don't like it?" Rose inquired, I shook my head.

"I'm sick of noble life. I never really have liked it, and it just always seems to get worse." I explained, playing with my sleeve. "I hate being waded on."

"I understand what you mean. I didn't come from a noble family, but my parents were the same as yours." Kensei said, I smiled thankful that someone finally understood.

"It's just really hard." I said, shrugging. Shinji smiled and went to put his arms around me.

"Miyo-chan!" I heard a girl yell. I turned around to find my sister making her entrance, she looked beautiful as always. She was wearing a white kimono with some gold in it to compliment her eyes. The maid had down her hair in the flip out style that Miyo just loved, and she was wearing a rather expensive looking necklace her fiancé had bought her. All in all she looked stunning, everyone rushed to her. Congratulating her on her engagement and such.

"So that's yer sis?" Shinji asked, I nodded.

"She's so beautiful." I said sighing "I've always been jealous."

"She's nothin' special." Hiyori said with a snort "If I was her then I'd be wantin' ta look like you Cho. Yer way prettier." I looked at Hiyori shocked.

"You're joking." I said, slightly surprised

"Nope." Hiyori said bluntly. She didn't say anything else, and I looked back at Shinji. He smiled at me, and I felt my cheeks going hot.

"There's no mizu-yokan." Mashiro whined. I tore my eyes away from Shinji's and looked back at Mashiro with a grimace.

"Gomen Mashiro-chan. Ano…hold on." I said looking around. "HEY, CHO NEEDS SOMETHING!" All sorts of servants came rushing at me.

"You called Choyo-sama." they all said in unison. I rolled my eyes slightly annoyed.

"My friend here's hungry, get her whatever she wants please." I said sweetly. Two went to Mashiro, listening to her list off all the sweets she wanted set out. "Can someone get me some sake though?"

"I'll get it right away Choyo-sama." one said, whisking off. I let out a sigh and looked back at Shinji. He chuckled and took my hands in his.

"Having servants definitely sucks huh?" he asked sarcastically. I rolled my eyes, entwining my fingers with his, he was so mean at times.

"Shinji-kun." I cooed, sounding incredibly seductive. His eyes widened when I leaned in close to him. I was so close to his face, he looked rather surprised I was so close to him in public. He definitely thought I was going to kiss him, I stopped a few inches short of his lips. "You're a meany-face." He smirked, putting his arm around my waist.

"Ya know Cho-chan, people could see this." he stated, I let out a sigh.

"True, so let's go out to the garden." I said smiling, he nodded in agreement. "It's quite beautiful around this time of year, there's so many flowers blooming." He grinned but moved his arm from around my waist. A second later…

"Choyo-sama. Your sake." I let out a sigh and took the glass.

"Arigato, now shoo." I said, waving him away. Shinji rolled his eyes at me, and I giggled. I raised the glass, chugging half the drink, and felt everyone's eyes on me.

"Nani?" I asked, slightly confused

"They've never seen ya drink before Cho-chan." Shinji reminded me, I nodded laughing.

"Right, they don't know I drink hardcore." I said still laughing. "We're going out to the garden, see you all later." They all said goodbye, and Shinji and I walked through the crowd of nobles to the door that led to the gardens. I chugged the rest of my sake and set the glass down somewhere random before opening the door. I looked back at Shinji, smiling at him, and we walked into the gardens.

**Author's Note: Miyo's wedding rehearsal, nice huh? Some pretty interesting thing's are gonna be happening next chapter. You're gonna be finding out about Aizen's interest in Cho so pay attention to everything written next chapter. Thanks for reading, and EIGHT REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER.**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_"Shinji…I really care about you. So much." I whispered. He smiled down at me, I felt him running his fingers through my hair._

_"Cho-chan, I feel the same way." _

_I smiled, feeling happy knowing he felt the same way about me. It was just an amazing feeling. He leaned in closer to me, brushing his lips against mine. My eyes slipped shut, and he fully pressed his lips against my own. I smiled into the kiss and he held me close to him, still running his fingers through my hair. He quickly pulled back from my lips but didn't move away from my face. I opened my eyes to find him staring at me, he was looking at me with such a loving and caring look._

_That's when I knew just how much he cared about me..._


	15. Chapter Fifteen: Nagataka Garden's

We walked down one of the pathways together, our fingers entwined with the other's, looking around at all the flowers. I smiled looking over at Shinji, and his eyes locked with mine. I felt my cheeks going warm but forced myself to ignore it, we needed to get a little further into the gardens if we were even going to even think about kissing. We were still rather close to the house. I lowered my eyes, holding my kimono up a bit, and walked a little faster. I tugged on his hand, trying to get him to follow me, and he rolled his eyes.

"What're we doin' Cho-chan?" he asked, barely keeping up

"I want you to see my favorite flowers." I said, walking faster. He chuckled, running up beside me, and squeezed my hand. I smiled, taking a turn in the gardens, walking down a different path.

"Ya sure this is alright?" Shinji asked, after a few seconds

"Nani?" I asked confused. I looked up at him, and he smiled slightly.

"Leavin' yer sister's wedding rehearsal." he replied, rubbing my thumb with his. I smiled and nodded.

"It's fine, Miyo doesn't care. I told her I'd be all over the place talking to my fellow Shinigami so if she didn't see me she shouldn't get worried." I said, looking up towards the stars. Shinji let go of my hand only to put his arm around my shoulders, he pulled me closer to him and I smiled up at him. He had no idea how happy he made me, I could just look at him and get more happy than I'd ever been. This must really have been what love felt like.

_**Of course it is, love is the most amazing feeling.**_

_Jesus Christ Kurisutaru. Do I not get any privacy now?_

_**I'm still considering it.**_

_Just for a few minutes, please!_

_**Fine, I'll be back though.**_

_Don't disappear like you did last time._

_**I wouldn't dream of it.**_

_Good._

We walked into another pathway, and I stopped infront of the Momo tree. All the flowers were blossoming like crazy, in all sorts of different shades of pink. I normally never liked pink, but when it came to this tree it was beautiful. The shades started at the lightest pink you could get, almost white it was so light. And it would go to the darkest pink you could get, almost red. Then there were all the other shades of pink, some were a pale pink, others were bright. There just so many shades on this one tree, and it was just a wonder to look at. I loved these flowers the most, azalia's were my second favorite. I looked over at Shinji, and he smiled.

"So these are yer favs huh?" I nodded in agreement. "They're pretty." he said, rubbing the back of his head. I nodded again, watching some of the flowers disconnect from the tree and glide to the ground.

"I never really have liked pink, but there's just something about these that make it pretty." I said softly. I looked up at Shinji to see him smile, and his eyes moved to mine. I smiled slightly, feeling my cheeks going pink. Shinji chuckled, gently running his fingers over my cheek. I felt my checks burning hotter, and he moved his arm from my shoulders to around my waist. I tilted my head to the side slightly, looking up at him. He smiled, staring into my eyes.

"Cho-chan, how do ya do this?" he asked quietly

"Do what?" I asked curiously

"Look at me so innocently." he replied "Makes me…" He stopped, and I put my arms around his neck still staring into his eyes.

"Makes you what?" I asked, he grinned.

"Makes me want ta protect ya from the world." he said, did I really look _that_ innocent or something?

"Do I really look so innocent?" I asked, thinking about what Aizen had said to me

"_Nagataka-san, do you know what you remind me of?" I managed to change my intimidated expression to a curious one. "You're so fragile, like glass. Easily broken, a porcelain doll if you will." he said, a smirk on his face._

Shinji smiled again, continuing with running his fingers over my cheek.

"Ya do, Cho-chan. Demo it makes ya so beautiful." he said, I lowered my eyes. He thought I looked innocent too, and that other day I'd gotten in that big fight with Emori Shinji hadn't thought I'd be the type of person to do something like that. My eyes, they glowed with innocence. Aizen even saw that…was Aizen trying to use my innocence to his own advantage?

_**Holy shit Cho! You figured it out, you figured out why Aizen's interested in you. He wants to use you for something.**_

_Fuck, what do I do?_

_**I don't know. Let me do all the thinking on this, you spend time with Shinji right now. We'll talk about this later.**_

_Demo-_

_**Do it, you won't get to kiss him until tomorrow if you don't now.**_

I looked back up at Shinji, locking my red eyes with his hazel ones.

"Shinji…I." I stopped and took a breath. "I know we haven't been together a week yet, demo…I really care about you. So much." I whispered. He smiled down at me, I felt him running his fingers through my hair.

"Cho-chan, I feel the same way." I smiled, feeling happy knowing he felt the same way about me in such a short period of time. It was just an amazing feeling, but I knew telling I loved him this early in our relationship wasn't a smart thing to do. I'd better wait awhile before I said that to him. He leaned in closer to me, brushing his lips against mine. My eyes slipped shut, and he fully pressed his lips against my own. I smiled into the kiss and he held me close to him, still running his fingers through my hair. He quickly pulled back from my lips but didn't move away from my face. I opened my eyes to find him staring at me, he was looking at me with such a loving and caring look.

That's when I knew just how much he cared about me, and I knew it would hurt him if something ever happened to me. I had to make sure I was especially careful now when I was around Aizen. He was dangerous, and I had a feeling he wouldn't hesitate to hurt me. If he found out that I was with Shinji he'd do one of two things. He'd stay away from me because he was afraid of Shinji, or he'd hurt me just to screw with Shinji. I was hoping it would be the first one, but I didn't count on it. Aizen didn't seem like the type that would give up what he wanted just out of fear of someone. I wouldn't let him screw with my relationship with Shinji though, that asshole wasn't going to take me away from Shinji no matter what.

"Cho-chan, maybe we should go back inside." Shinji said. I shook my head, not wanting to go in just yet.

"I want to spend more time with you, sneaking around isn't as easy as I thought." I said with a smile, Shinji rolled his eyes in amusement.

"Of course it's not." he said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world "There's always the chance yer gonna get caught." I smiled sweetly and said

"That's what makes it exhilarating though." I stood on my tiptoes, catching him in a surprise kiss. He smiled, slipping both his arms around my waist, and spun me around in a circle. I broke the kiss giggling and smiled up at him. "You're so amazing taicho." He let out a sigh.

"Taicho again?" I giggled and shrugged to myself.

"You are my taicho." I stated

"Demo I toldja ta call me Shinji." he complained, I leaned against him, putting my head on his shoulder (or at least attempting to).

"I know demo…" I stopped, feeling my face heat up.

"Nani?" he asked kissing my forehead. I hid my face in his haori and said

"I like calling you taicho, it's something to be proud of." I glanced up at him, and he looked at me questioningly.

"My my, someone's hiding something from me." he teased. I blushed darker, hiding my face again. "What're ya really thinkin' Cho-chan?" I made sure my face was completely hidden and mumbled

"I think…it's kinda sexy." I blushed even darker hearing him laugh, and he held me closer to him.

"So ya like callin' me taicho cuz ya think it sounds sexy?" I groaned slightly and shook my head embarrassed. "Yer so cute Cho-chan." he whispered in my ear. I blushed bright red, and he kissed my cheek. "We're gonna go back inside, alright?" I nodded and looked back up at him. He smiled, still holding me, and said "Everyone'll be wonderin' where ya are if we don't go back soon." I nodded in agreement and pulled his face down to mine, meeting his lips. He grinned, kissing me back, and ran his hand down my arm. I smiled to myself, and what seemed like a second later he broke the kiss. I knew it had probably lasted at least a minute even though it felt like seconds, that's just how kissing worked. But the thing I was really wondering was why it seemed like he was restraining himself, all he was giving me was butterfly kisses; he seemed to be acting _very_ careful around me. What was he thinking? I didn't understand.

He hugged me tightly before we headed back inside the manor. I sighed, not liking being back inside, and looked over at Shinji. He smiled slightly and nudged my side. I giggled, playing with a strand of my hair, and looked around for my sister. She was surrounded by a bunch of her friends, they all looked like they were gossiping. Of course, why wasn't I surprised?

"Cho-chan?" I looked over at Shinji, and he smiled. "Go spend some time with yer sis. I'm gonna go talk with Rose and Lisa." I nodded smiling slightly. "I'll see ya later, promise." I nodded again, and we parted ways. I knew I needed to tell Miyo about Shinji, if I didn't she'd get real mad if she found it out from someone other than me. I glided across the room, weaving in and out of nobles, trying to avoid any attention from them. A bunch of nobles were dancing in the middle of the room, so I had to make my way to Miyo from the outside. I did a half circle and made it to where Miyo and her friends were talking.

"Yeah, he's so amazing." Miyo was saying "He just bought me this necklace last night."

"It looks gorgeous Miyo-chan, your fiancé has good taste in jewelry." one of them was saying. Miyo giggled in agreement.

"He's not cheap at all, only the best for his little angel he says." she said. They all aww'd at that, and I resisted the urge to make a gag face. So disgusting, nobles were just so gross.

"I can't wait to meet my fiancé, but I have to wait a good year before that." one said

"I have about a four month wait."

"Well I get to meet mine next Saturday."

"No fair!" Miyo laughed amused, and I crept up beside her.

"Miyo-chan?" She looked over and smiled seeing me.

"Cho, you look stunning." she exclaimed "Did you do your hair on your own again?" I nodded, shrugging a bit.

"Well you know how I am. I don't like the fancy hairstyles really." I said sweetly. She giggled in agreement and looked back to her friends.

"You all remember Cho of course." she said, waving her hand towards me.

"Wow Cho, you look so grownup."

"Love your dress."

"It compliments your eyes very nicely."

"It does, doesn't it?"

"Arigato." I said, surprised at all the compliments; I usually never got this much praise about my looks.

"Ano, Cho-chan. You know that one noble?" Miyo asked, I looked at her confused.

"There's quite a few nobles here Miyo." I said scratching the back of my neck. She chuckled in agreement.

"The Senri house." she said, clarifying. I nodded when it clicked.

"Oh right, they have what…five sons or something." I guessed

"Yeah, well they were _all_ asking about you." Miyo said smirking. I felt my cheeks go hot, all _five_ of them had been looking for me? Why did Miyo have to be engaged? These nobles would've left me alone had she still been single.

_**I doubt that dear, you look beautiful.**_

_You've already said that._

_**And I mean it, you really look stunning.**_

_Like I care about that. I have Shinji, I couldn't care less about a bunch of noble boys._

"Like I care." I said rolling my eyes "Nobles are stupid." All the girls glared, and I smirked in amusement. Miyo giggled, happy that I was speaking my mind. "They're all conceited and think they can get everything they want. Huh…I really need some sake though."

"Cho-chan, are you really?" Miyo whined. I nodded.

"CHO NEEDS SOMETHING!" Seconds later, surrounded by servants. "Get me sake, a lot of sake."

"Hai Choyo-sama." I rolled my eyes and looked back at the group of girls.

"Anyway, Miyo-chan. I need to talk to you really quick." I said "You girls don't mind if I steal her for a second."

"Go right ahead." her best friend said. I nodded for a thank you and dragged Miyo off to a more private place.

"What's up?" she asked curiously "You need to make it quick cause all these nobles are gonna attack us any second now." I nodded and said

"Miyo-chan…I have a boyfriend."

"BOY-"

"Shush!" I said, slapping my hand over her mouth. A servant rushed over, handing me my sake. "Arigato, shoo." They left, I chugged my drink hearing

"When…who…spill!" I rolled my eyes, lowering the glass.

"Alright, you can't tell anyone though." I said quietly

"Like I would, I always keep your secrets." Miyo said impatiently. I nodded, knowing she always had, and said

"Ok, you remember my taicho right?" She nodded. "Well…I'm dating him." Her jaw dropped. "I started dating him a few days ago so it hasn't been that long, demo-"

"Aw, so cute. What day?" she asked smiling

"The day of the fireworks." I said smiling

"Aw, I'm so proud of you Cho-chan. What's he like…is he here? I wanna meet him." she whined. I giggled to myself, she was so happy I'd gotten a boyfriend after so long. She'd been pushing me to date someone for ages.

"He's here." I said answering her "You really want to meet him?" She nodded.

"I really do Cho. I wanna meet the guy that's made my sister so happy." she said smiling "You've been so happy since you joined the Gotei 13, and I bet it's because of this guy." I smiled and let out a sigh.

"Alright you can meet him. Demo, don't tell Oka-san and Otou-san…or anyone. I need to keep it a secret until after your wedding." I said, she nodded in agreement.

"I think that's the best idea. If they find out there'll be a ton of drama. I'll make sure not to let them set you up with any nobles, promise." she said hugging me.

"Arigato Miyo-chan." I whispered

"Anytime sweetie. Now where is he? I wanna meet him!" she whined. I giggled and said

"Ok fine. Let's go find him." She smiled, and we began walking through the crowd of nobles to find Shinji.

**Author's Note: Hmmm, so people know about Cho and Shinji...I wonder what's gonna happen with that. And Miyo gets to meet Shinji, I wonder if she's gonna approve or not. Well...then again, I do know but I won't tell you guys just yet. You'll hafta wait for the next chapter. Anyway, here's the drill. You guys know it rather well. EIGHT REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER!!! Thanks for all the lovely reviews from the last chapter, they're greatly appreciated. =]**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_I wondered if Miyo would be able to help me._

_"Nani?" she asked, looking at me._

_"It seems like…he's holding back something." I said scratching my head. She tilted her head to the side confused. "Like…he's really careful when he's with me." She smiled, going back to searching the room._

_"I know exactly what you're talking about." she said_

_"Really?" I asked happily "Then you can help right?" She nodded, I was so lucky to have an older sister that knew how men worked._

_"Well, the reason he's being so careful around you is because..."_


	16. Chapter Sixteen: Miyo's Fiance

Miyo and I walked around the room, hoping to run into Shinji, and after what seemed like ages we found him.

"Taicho?" Shinji looked away from talking to Rose, and I smiled slightly. "This is Miyo, she's my older sister." Miyo smiled, shaking hands with Shinji.

"Nice to finally meet you." Miyo said, still smiling

"Like wise, ya've thrown quite the party." Shinji observed

"Eh…I guess." Miyo said, shrugging to herself "You should've seen the one I through for Cho-chan when she was accepted into Gotei 13, now that was crazy." I rolled my eyes, shoving her a bit. She giggled amused at my embarrassment. "Well, I wish I could stay and talk. But if I don't get going my fiancé will literally kill me." Shinji nodded, understanding.

"It was nice meetin' ya anyway, Cho-chan talks 'bout ya all the time." Shinji told her, Miyo smiled at me.

"Do you really?" she asked, I nodded blushing a bit. "Aw, you're so cute Cho-chan." She hugged me tightly and said "I hate stealing her away from you, but she has yet to meet my fiancé so-"

"I getit, just bring 'er back when you've finished with 'er." Shinji said, smirking at me. I felt my cheeks heat up even more, and Miyo laughed.

"Will do, Cho-chan come on." I nodded, smiled at Shinji, and walked away with her. We walked around the room, searching for her fiancé, and talked a bit with other nobles on the way. Once we'd gotten away from most of them I looked at her, while she continued to search for her guy.

"So…do you like him?" I asked, waiting for Miyo's approval. She giggled and nodded, her eyes scanning the room.

"Very much, he seems pretty laidback." I nodded in agreement.

"He is." I said "And he's really sweet…demo…" I stopped, wondering if Miyo would be able to help me.

"Nani?" she asked, looking at me.

"It seems like…he's holding back something." I said scratching my head. She tilted her head to the side confused. "Like…he's really careful when he's with me." She smiled, going back to searching the room.

"I know exactly what you're talking about." she said

"Really?" I asked happily "Then you can help right?" She nodded, I was so lucky to have an older sister that knew how men worked.

_**You have me too, ya know.**_

_I know Kurisutaru. Demo…I'd like to get advice from my actual sister for once._

_**Fine, whatever. I get it.**_

"Well, the reason he's being so careful around you is because he cares about you. He doesn't want to wind up hurting you. Dai was the same way around me for the longest time." she explained

"How does that have anything to do with-" I asked frustrated

"I'm getting there." she interrupted "He has a strong physical attraction towards you Cho, but his emotional attraction towards you is much stronger. And that's how he manages to keep himself in check."

"Nani?" I whined in confusion. She sighed, shaking her head.

"Cho, he wants to make-out with you." she said, I felt my cheeks go hot.

"Nani?" I asked quietly. She rolled her eyes.

"He obviously wants that rough, sexy, physical yummy kind of thing." I looked at her confused, why did she have to be so confusing about everything.

_**It's not confusing in the least.**_

_Says you._

"Demo, he doesn't want to hurt you. When me and Dai first started seeing each other when we were engaged, our kisses were just simple things. I knew that he wanted more though because he wouldn't let the kiss last that long. Like…two minute kisses, and that's it." she said, I nodded in agreement; Shinji was that way as well. "He told me the reason for it was because he was just so physically attracted to me. That if we would've kissed longer than that he wouldn't be able to restrain himself from shoving his tongue down my throat." I felt my cheeks burning, why was she so blunt?

_**Well that IS what making-out is.**_

_Shut it._

"He didn't want to push me into doing something I wasn't ready to do, so that's why he kept the kisses as simple as he could." she continued "He didn't want to hurt me emotionally is what he was saying." I nodded, starting to understand a little better. "And that's why Shinji's being so careful, Cho-chan…you're a very fragile person-"

"Why does everyone say that?" I asked, getting slightly fed up with everyone thinking I was _so_ fragile.

"Because it's true Cho. You're very innocent, and he doesn't want to do something that might hurt you. That's why he's being so careful…because he cares about you." she said, I sighed to myself. I thought back to earlier that evening when my voice had sounded really seductive and why he'd looked so shocked. He hadn't expected something like that from me…_I_ hadn't expected that from me. With everyone thinking of me as innocent, it would shock people to know I could be seductive when I wanted to be…that wasn't me in the least though.

"Basically Cho-chan…" I looked back at Miyo, wondering what she was going to say now. "Shinji is very attracted to you and definitely wants more, but his emotions won't let him because he respects you. He doesn't want to hurt you, and he'll wait for you to make the first move on stepping up your relationship." I nodded, finally understanding what was going on in Shinji's head. It actually got me wondering how physically aggressive he could be. I blushed at the thought and looked over at Miyo, hearing her gasp.

"Did you find Dai?" I asked, she nodded.

"Let's go, you _have_ to meet him." she exclaimed. I almost groaned but managed to hold it in. I didn't want to upset Miyo, because I knew how much she cared about this guy. She grabbed my hand and led me through the nobles. "Dai!" A man with straight brown hair looked up from talking to one of his friends and smiled at Miyo. He had green eyes and looked like he was 5'8 or so, I had to admit that he was the perfect match for my sister even though I didn't want to.

"Miyo-chan." he exclaimed, rapping his arms around her. I smiled slightly, seeing how perfect they were for each other. I'd never met this guy, so I knew I needed to play nice; I could be a bitch if he was an asshole.

_**You got that right chicky.**_

_He better not be the type of man to cheat, if he is then he'll be dead._

_**Can I help?**_

_Perhaps._

"Dai, this is my sister Choyo." Miyo said, introducing me to her fiancé.

"A pleasure to meet you Choyo." he said, taking my hand and politely kissing it; I smiled slightly.

"It's nice to finally meet the man that's stolen my sister's heart." I said sweetly. He smiled that charming smile at me, but it seemed so fake. God, I hoped my sister hadn't gotten herself engaged to some jerk. That would be just her luck.

"May I have a dance?" he asked, looking at me. I looked at Miyo, and she nodded wanting me to spend a little time with her fiancé. I nodded and Miyo smiled, happy that I was going to get to know Dai a little more. We walked into the middle of the room, and he lightly put his hand on my waist. I took his hand, placing the other on his shoulder, and we gracefully glided across the floor.

"So…what do you like about my sister exactly?" I asked, trying to start up some type of conversation

"Everything." he answered simply "She's perfect in everyway." I forced myself not to roll my eyes, of course she was perfect. Every guy thought that…and that was the safest answer for a guy to give a girl.

_**Ain't that the truth.**_

_Mhm._

"I'm hoping we'll be able to be good friends Cho-chan." I almost narrowed my eyes. Since when was he allowed to add a suffix to my name…and I hadn't even told him I went by Cho. Something here was not right.

_**Keep your guard up, I have a feeling he's up to something.**_

_Ok, I'll make sure to be careful._

"I hope so too." I said quietly "Not being friends when we'll be a family is rather hard." He nodded in agreement, smirking at me.

"You know Cho-chan…" I actually _did_ narrow my eyes, what was he up to? "You are rather beautiful."

"Arigato." I said, not meaning it in the least. What was this guy up to? What did he think he was playing at?

_**I have a bad feeling about this.**_

"It's such a shame that you're not already engaged." he said, tightening his grip on my waist. Ok, this guy was _definitely_ up to something.

_**Oh yeah, we know that for sure now.**_

"I'm enjoying being single." I stated coldly "I'm not really looking for a relationship at this time, I'm happy with just spending time with my friends and Miyo." His smirk widened, and he said

"You don't really seem like the independent type." I clenched my jaw angrily.

"Well, there's quite a few things I don't seem to be." I said, resisting the urge to punch my sister fiancé in his pretty boy face.

"Oh, like what?" he asked amused, I smirked to myself.

"Seventh seat Shinigami in the fifth squad." I replied "I should be going up to third seat some time soon seeing as I kick major ass." He smirked again, how was he not intimidated? That was rather impressive, why wasn't he afraid?

"Seventh seat, impressive. I was actually a fukutaicho for a while."

_**Fuck, no wonder he's not intimidated. Be careful, he's thinking something bad.**_

_Obviously._

"Oh really, that's interesting. I didn't think a stuck up noble such as yourself would be able to make it that far up the ranks." I teased, not being able to keep the words from coming out of my mouth. He narrowed his eyes angrily, I almost yelped when he squeezed my waist harder.

_**Let's beat his face in!**_

"You know Cho-chan, you shouldn't be playing a game you can't win." he said, sounding rather threatening. I felt my eyes widen nervously, this wasn't good at all.

"And you would know something like this, how?" I asked, not being able to hide how intimidated I was. He smirked, amused that he'd managed to scare me.

"Let's just say that I get whatever I want." he said slyly

"Really now, don't _all_ nobles get what they want?" I asked, feeling his hand sliding a little further down my waist. I squirmed a bit, uncomfortable with his touch. He leaned forward, close to my ear, and whispered

"True Cho-chan, but they all don't get _whoever_ they want." I felt my eyes widen, this guy was just using my sister. What right did he have?

_**Holy shit, this is bad. Let me kill him!**_

_You can't, he's Miyo's fiancé._

_**KUSO!**_

"Excuse me?" I breathed

"Miyo is quite the prize." he continued, still close to me. His arm was all the way around me, Miyo must've thought we were really becoming friends. Damn, this wasn't good. "To be truly honest Cho-chan, I rather like having someone that looks as innocent as yourself by my side." I felt my heart speeding up, I was so nervous, why couldn't he just be content with Miyo? She was all too beautiful, she was funny, she was…gah! This was not good at all.

"Just shut up, and let me go." I ordered, I could just feel him smirk next to my ear.

"Come now Cho-chan, Miyo thinks we're getting along. You wouldn't want to hurt your sister's feelings now, would you?" he teased. I let out a breath of defeat, he was right. I didn't want to hurt Miyo, she was my sister and I loved her. I was just going to have to take his remarks until I could manage to slip away from him. He finally moved back from my ear and locked his eyes with mine. "You're so innocent looking Cho-chan."

"I get that alot." I mumbled, trying to hold in how angry I was. He smirked again, tilting his head to the side to look at me.

"I can see why, you're just-"

_**Yay, rescue time!**_

_Huh?_

"Mind if I interrupt?" I looked over and smiled seeing Shinji.

"Taicho." I said happily. I looked back at Dai, and he looked at Shinji curiously.

"So you're a Shinigami?" he asked, sounding extremely annoyed, Shinji gave a short nod. He wasn't even grinning, he looked very angry.

"I'm Cho's taicho, Hirako Shinji. I hope you don't mind me stealing my subordinate for a dance." Shinji said darkly. I almost smiled, realizing he wasn't using slang; he was pissed off. This guy better let me go, or he'd be splattered all over the wall. Dai grimaced and released my waist.

"Not at all. I'm Miyo's fiancé, Hidaka Dai." Dai said, introducing himself "Arigato for the dance Choyo." I glared slightly but nodded anyway. "I'll see you later, I'm going to convince Miyo to dance a little."

"You'll have a hard time, she hates dancing." I said coldly. Dai smirked and walked off the dance floor towards Miyo. I looked at Shinji and smiled slightly. "Arigato Hirako-taicho." He nodded, gently taking me in his arms, and took my hand. I didn't know he could dance this well, he was just all around amazing.

"I don't like that guy." Shinji said, he sounded _extremely_ angry.

"Me either." I admitted "He was hitting on me the entire time."

"I saw." Shinji said, glancing towards where Dai and Miyo were dancing. I winced, feeling him move his hand down my waist, it was a bit sore. "Are ya alright Cho-chan?" He looked at me concerned, and I lowered my head a bit.

"Hai, Hirako-taicho. I'm fine, it just hurts a bit." I whispered. He narrowed his eyes into a glare; yeah, he was extremely pissed off. "Please don't do anything, he's Miyo's fiancé. He makes her happy."

"Cho-"

"Can we just go somewhere private?" I asked quietly "Please." He let out a sigh but nodded, not wanting to upset me. We walked off the dance floor, not holding hands since people were watching, and outside away from everyone's eyes. He brought me in his arms, holding me against him protectively.

"Cho-chan, I don't want ya near that man again." he said angrily, I nodded in agreement.

"I've been planning on moving out of the manor and getting a room in the barracks." I said softly "I won't be dealing with him anymore." Shinji nodded, still looking unsure, and I smiled slightly. "I'll even come sneak in your room if you want Shinji-kun." I teased, damn I sounded seductive _yet_ again. His eyes widened slightly, and I rolled my eyes. "If you don't want me to, I won't."

"Cho-chan, that's not it." he said quickly. He groaned slightly and put his head in one of his hands. "Let's talk 'bout this later, kay?" I nodded in agreement and buried my face in his haori. That little episode had proved to me that Shinji had _really _strong feelings towards me, and I knew that I had the same feelings towards him. No one was going to destroy the relationship we had, and if they tried they wouldn't succeed. I let out a sigh of contentment and moved my face out of his haori. I glared seeing Aizen watching us. Aizen especially wasn't going to ruin what we had, I wouldn't give him the chance.

**Author's Note: Well Miyo approves, but her stupid fiance is a douch. Of course it's poor Miyo's luck to be engaged to a jerk like Dai. And Shinji, dang...it's so sweet that he respects her. I put that in because I thought it would be nice for him to have a softer side, all guys need that softer side to them. Anyway, thanks for all the lovely reviews from the last chapter. EIGHT REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER!!! Thanks for reading, preview time!**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_I stopped infront of Shinji's door and lightly knocked. I waited a few seconds before the door opened, and I was staring straight at Shinji. He hadn't gotten around to changing out of his uniform, the only thing missing was his haori. He looked at me confused, wondering what I was doing here so late, and finally managed to say_

_"Cho…what're ya doin' here?" I smiled slightly and said_

_"Ano…I know it's late Hirako-taicho. Demo…I need to talk to you about something." He nodded and stepped aside so I could enter. I walked into his room, and he slid the door shut behind me. He grinned, rapping both his arms around my waist, and kissed my cheek. I smiled and giggled when he picked me up bridal style. "Taicho!" I whined. He chuckled, carrying me across the room before gently setting me on his bed. He sat beside me and lightly kissed my lips._

_"What's goin' on Cho-chan?" he asked, running his fingers down my cheek. I smiled slightly and said_

_"Well…it has to do with my parents." I said quietly_


	17. Chapter Seventeen: Freedom

"What do you mean you're moving out?" my father asked angrily. I let out a sigh, rolling my eyes.

"I mean just that. I'm moving out of the manor." I said seriously

_**Wow, is your Otou-san just that dense?**_

_Perhaps, he's a baka._

Mother looked across the room at me leaning against the wall and said

"Choyo, we don't want you to leave." I resisted the urge to roll my eyes again, that was a lie. She wasn't all that good of an actress, but I was trying to be civil. I knew I couldn't get angry about this, I had to keep my cool.

"I know Oka-san, demo…I need to." I responded

"Nande?" father asked angrily. I narrowed my eyes at him, before looking across the room at Miyo and Dai.

Miyo looked so heartbroken that I was leaving, but I knew I couldn't stay in this house any longer. My parents were horrible people, and they didn't ever treat me with respect. They acted like I was just their little toy, used whenever they were bored with their own lives. They treated me like I was nothing so I'd make sure they didn't have any say over what I did anymore. I was sad about leaving Miyo because she was my sister, but it wasn't like I'd never see her again. Just because I was moving out didn't mean I'd never come visit her. She was my best friend, it wasn't like I could just abandon her. That wasn't the kind of person I was. Even if I did want to abandon her, I knew I wouldn't be able to make myself.

Another reason I was leaving was because of Dai; this guy was seriously pissing me off. He'd only been staying in the house for a little over a week, but I was already fed up with his shit. He spent the majority of his time with Miyo, but when he wasn't with her he was always wandering around the manor hoping to run into me. I didn't understand why he had to get an obsession with me of all people. What had I done besides tell him to leave me alone and that I didn't want anything to do with him? Nothing. My only thought about this situation was that he really didn't have an attraction towards me, it was just that he liked messing with me. He'd pissed me off every time I'd run into him, and I knew I couldn't stand it anymore. Especially since a few times he'd tried pinning me to the wall and sexually assaulting me. Lucky for me I wasn't stupid, and I'd screamed for a servant when he'd tried it. Then he'd shunpo away, leaving me to give some lame excuse to the servant like I fell or whatever.

But I knew I couldn't stand it all anymore, so when I'd gotten to Seireitei this morning, I'd went directly to Yamamoto-Soutaicho and asked him if I could move into the fifth squad's barracks. He'd, of course, said yes. I was in bliss all day, and in an overly happy mood. I might've scared people because of it, but I was so happy. When I'd got home I ordered my room to be cleared out, and all my stuff to be put in my room in the fifth squad. That had been finished for a good two hours, and I sat at home waiting for my parents to arrive back from a dinner party they'd attended. Now I was breaking the news to them, and they didn't seem all that pleased. I didn't really care they were mad, I was just angry with myself for upsetting Miyo so much. She'd already looked like she was about to cry, I couldn't imagine her reaction once I _did _leave.

I stared at Miyo for a second, letting her know how sorry I was, and my eyes flicked to Dai. He had a serious expression on his face, but I could tell by the way he was looking at me that he was amused. He was waiting for my parents to forbid me from leaving or something like that. I didn't care though, they couldn't stop me from leaving. It wasn't like I was still a child or something. I was an adult, a young adult, but still an adult. They couldn't keep me here, even if we were a "noble" family. I moved my eyes away from Dai, for them to land back on my parents.

"It takes me too long to get to Seireitei from here." I explained "If Seireitei were to be attacked then-"

"You would not participate in the battle. You're of noble blood." father snapped, I glared at him.

"That's where you're wrong Otou-san." I disagreed "We're not nobles, we've never been nobles."

_**Oooo, they're gettin' pissed.**_

_Ha ha, I know._

"Choyo, watch your mouth." mother snapped, I deepened my glare.

"You all try to act like we're nobles, we're not though. We're nobles by association, we weren't born into this. We were dragged into the world of nobles because of all _your _noblefriends. Not even that, great-grandfather was the one that got our family dragged into this life. I hate it, and you can't stop me from leaving." I snapped. They both looked at me, shocked that I had spoken my mind for the first time.

_**Damn Cho, I'm proud of you.**_

_Arigato. I'm proud of myself too. I've been wanting to say a bunch of that stuff forever, and I'm not stopping yet._

_**Keep going. Let your feelings out.**_

_I might do more than let just my feelings out._

_**Whacha thinkin'**_

_Maybe punch someone._

_**Oooo, my girl's so bad.**_

_I know Kurisutaru, you don't have to tell me._

"This life is hell, and I'm sick of it. I'm sick of being waded on like I'm royalty, I'm sick of having to attend all these parties where no one even cares enough about me to pay attention to me, I'm sick of dealing with all the insults that get thrown in my face everyday, and what I'm even more sick of is these stupid noble laws you make me follow. I'm not a noble, damn it! You can't keep me here, I'm an adult and have the right to do whatever I want. So I'm leaving, and I'll see you all at Miyo's wedding." I said, pushing myself off the wall. I slid the door open and took a step out of the door before I heard

"Choyo-"

"It's Cho, damn-it!" I raged angrily, turning to face them "Cho! When have I ever went by the name Choyo?"

_**You have a very good point, I don't think I've ever called you by your full name…have I?**_

_Nope, you weren't that stupid._

_**True.**_

They all stared at me, shocked that I was acting the way I was, and Miyo finally said

"I don't want you to leave Cho-chan, but do what makes you happy. I'll see you at my wedding." She smiled brightly, and I smiled at her.

"Arigato Nee-san." I said, sounding sweet again "I'll bring a nice present for you." She giggled, nodding in thanks. I looked back towards my parents, a frown sitting on my face again. "Did you all want to say something before I leave?" They both gave me a blank stare before my father said

"If you take one step off this land, I'll-"

"Disown me?" I asked sarcastically, laughing a bit. "Please, like I care. You can disown me, take away my inheritance, strip me of my title. Do whatever makes you feel good about yourself, because none of that will bother me." They both seemed so surprised at me saying that, neither of them said anything else. I moved my gaze away from them, back to Miyo. "I'll see you later Miyo-chan." She nodded, still smiling at me.

"Later Imouto." I smiled again and head out of the room. I walked down the stairs, across the room, and to the doors. I pushed open the doors to the manor and walked out onto the grounds, knowing one of the servants would close the door behind me. I walked a little further and used shunpo to get on top of the wall. I jumped off the wall, my hair flying all around me, and landed in a crouched position on the sidewalk. I straightened up, playing with a few strands of my hair, and let out a sigh of contentment. I was so happy I was out of that place, this was one of the greatest things I'd ever done for myself. I knew my parents were most likely pissed off at me, but I didn't care. I'd finally gotten the freedom I'd wanted for years, and there was no way I was giving it up.

_**Gosh, today sure is a great day huh?**_

_Yep, a very great day._

_**You know what would make it better?**_

_Ano…some sake?_

_**Perhaps, but I have a better suggestion.**_

_A better suggestion? What's better than sake?_

I put my hands behind my head, walking down the street towards Seireitei. I needed to get some sleep, but I continued conversating with Kurisutaru. I was really curious about what was better than sake, but she was just being herself and making me wonder. Why couldn't she just stop laughing and answer?

_Well? What's better?_

_**You're sure you wanna know?**_

_Very much._

I could hear her continuing to laugh inside my head, couldn't she pull herself together for at least a second?

_**Alright, this is what's better than sake…**_

_Well?_

_**Fuckin' SEX!**_

I felt my cheeks burn and covered my face with my hands. Why was she so blunt like that?

_**I think you need to go see Shinji.**_

I groaned, shaking my head. I knew my cheeks were bright pink by now, it was a good thing it was rather late at night or someone would be staring at me like I was some weirdo.

_I'm not going to have sex._

_**Demo-**_

_I haven't ever made-out with anyone, and you want me to have sex?_

_**Ok, never mind. I thought…never mind.**_

_Kissing is different then making out._

_**I know that, I'd just thought that you had before.**_

_NO!_

_**Ok, go make-out with him then.**_

I rolled my eyes, shaking my head.

_I think I'll just go see him for a minute or so, then I need to get some sleep._

_**In his bed.**_

_No, in my own._

She giggled inside my head but didn't say anything else. She was so annoying at times, I didn't know how I managed to put up with all her nonstop rambling. I sighed, walking inside Seireitei, and head over to the barracks. I looked around the hallways for a moment, wondering what the time was.

_**10:34**_

_Arigato._

I walked down the hallway, towards Shinji's room. I needed to tell him about everything that had happened back at home, I had a feeling he'd be upset with me but proud at the same time. I was hoping I was wrong, and he was just proud that I'd stood up for myself for once. I stopped infront of Shinji's door and lightly knocked. I waited a few seconds before the door opened, and I was staring straight at Shinji. He hadn't gotten around to changing out of his uniform, the only thing missing was his haori. He looked at me confused, wondering what I was doing here so late, and finally managed to say

"Cho…what're ya doin' here?" I smiled slightly and said

"Ano…I know it's late Hirako-taicho. Demo…I need to talk to you about something." He nodded and stepped aside so I could enter. I walked into his room, and he slid the door shut behind me. He grinned, rapping both his arms around my waist, and kissed my cheek. I smiled and giggled when he picked me up bridal style. "Taicho!" I whined. He chuckled, carrying me across the room before gently setting me on his bed. He sat beside me and lightly kissed my lips.

"What's goin' on Cho-chan?" he asked, running his fingers down my cheek. I smiled slightly and said

"Well…it has to do with my parents." I said quietly. He nodded, watching as I took a strand of his hair between my fingers. I played with his hair while saying "I moved out, and they're pretty mad."

"Ya did what?" he asked, sounding shocked.

"I moved out." I repeated, looking up into his eyes "I told you I would."

"Demo…I didn't think ya'd actually do it." Shinji said, moving his fingers down my neck. I felt the blush on my face heating up, and I said softly

"Well…I couldn't stand being there anymore. It was driving me crazy." He rolled his eyes, falling back on his bed.

"Yer such a trouble maker." he mumbled. I giggled, laying beside him. I placed my head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

"They deserved everything I said to them." I said quietly "They didn't care that I left, they're just angry that they won't be able to control everything I do anymore. They never have cared, it's always been about Miyo. It wasn't hard finding someone for Miyo to marry, but the hard thing was getting her to agree on one. Me…no one would've wanted me because after the sixth guy they'd all realized my only answer was going to be no. I don't want anyone, just you Shinji." Shinji tilted my face up, making me look at him.

"Cho-chan…" I stared back into his eyes, stopping him from saying whatever he'd planned on saying. "I hate how ya look at me like that." he said softly "Ya make my head go blank." I smiled slightly, wondering if he knew that he did the same thing to me when he stared into my eyes. He smiled slightly, pressing his lips against my forehead; I hated when he did that. Why couldn't he just kiss my lips? "Yer so beautiful Cho-chan." I smiled feeling him press his lips against mine. I closed my eyes, letting go of all thoughts, and kissed him back. His lips tasted amazing, they were so addicting. I never wanted to stop kissing him. He broke the kiss and I opened my eyes, glaring slightly. Why did he always feel the need to do that to me? He looked at me confused, most likely wondering why I was glaring, and said "Cho-" I cut him off with my lips, putting my hand on the back of his neck. He kissed back, putting his arm around my waist, resting his hand against the small of my back. I thought for a moment, wondering how exactly you were supposed to make out with someone.

_**Don't, not yet.**_

_I'm tired of these butterfly-kisses though!_

_**Just open your mouth, moving your lips against his. NO TONGUE!**_

_I know how to kiss without using tongue, I'm not stupid._

_**But you're innocent as fuck, you've never made-out with-**_

_Shut up._

I almost pulled out of the kiss but forced myself ignore Kurisutaru comment. I felt him pull my body closer to his, and he broke the kiss.

"Cho, are ya alright?" he asked, looking me straight in the eyes. I nodded, smiling a little.

"Why wouldn't I be?" I asked sweetly.

"Yer parents." he replied, running his fingers through my hair. I shook my head, I wasn't upset about them in the least.

"I'm fine, I'm not upset about them." I said simply "They'll do whatever they want." He nodded, studying me for a moment, before kissing me again. Weirdly enough, he didn't make it a butterfly kiss…I guess I wouldn't have to make the first move after all.

_**Damn, I wanted to see his crazy reaction.**_

_I'm kinda busy, go away._

I smiled into the kiss, happy that he was ready to step up our relationship a bit. I kissed him back, running my fingers through his hair. The kiss seemed to end all to soon, but when I realized we'd been kissing for a good ten minutes, well…I didn't know what to think. Besides that it was amazing. I let out a sigh of contentment, smiling to myself when he kissed my forehead. I closed my eyes, letting go of all thoughts, before I fell asleep. I hadn't ever thought falling asleep in someone's arms could be as romantic as it sounded.

**Author's Note: How awesome huh? Cho's quite the rebelious child, brave enough to move out on her own and bold enough to say all that stuff to her parents. I love it when people speak their minds and totally pissed off other people. It's quite the amusing thing to watch. Anyway though, thanks for all the awesome reviews from the last chapter. They made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, haha. So, you guys know the drill. EIGHT REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER!!!**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_I bit my lip boredly, thinking about random things, and felt my shoulder bump something._

_**Watch out.**_

_"Oh, gomen nasai." I said, turning to face the person I'd bumped into. I narrowed my eyes seeing it was Aizen, and his lips stretched into an amused smile. __I clenched my jaw and turned away from him, taking a step._

****

_Watch yourself._

_I know._

_I felt his fingers encircle my wrist and grimaced feeling how tightly he was squeezing it. I turned back to face him, and he stared down into my eyes._

_"Nagataka-san, I've been looking for you for quite some time today." he said, sounding oh so polite. I nodded, like I even cared._

_"For?" I asked, making my voice sound as sweet as possible. He narrowed his eyes, trying to figure me out..._


	18. Chapter Eighteen: Letters

"YES!" I cheered, jumping up in the air. I waved my wooden katana around, smiling at my victory. Emori rolled his eyes before pushing himself up and grabbing his katana from the floor.

"Good job Cho-chan." he said, smiling a bit. I giggled and quickly hugged him.

"Arigato for all the help Emori-kun." I said sweetly, he rolled his eyes again. Hina clapped, beckoning me over to her. I bounced across the training room, before plopping down beside Hina, still happy over my victory.

"That was awesome Cho-chan, you should be going up a few seats for sure." she said, I shrugged.

"Eh…I rather like seventh seat." I said, lying a little bit.

_**Liar liar.**_

_I already know that Kurisutaru, sheesh._

_**I was just reminding you.**_

_Uh huh, arigato…I think._

"Why would ya want to stay at seventh seat?" Taiga asked shoving me. I pouted to myself, lightly punching his arm. "You've improved by so much...you've beaten Emori like seven times." Emori glared at him and proceeded to hit him upside the head with his katana. Taiga grabbed the katana stopping him, and I giggled a bit.

"Arigato." I said smiling "Demo…if it wasn't for all of you-"

"Cho-chan, just because we helped doesn't mean we're the only reason you got better." Okito interrupted, rapping his arm around Hina; she nodded in agreement.

"You're really talented Cho-chan." she said, pulling out her mirror. "You know what you're doing with your Zanpakuto...well…katana I mean." She looked at her reflection, playing with a few strands of her hair. Okito rolled his eyes, taking her mirror. "Hey give it back you jerk!" she raged. He chuckled, holding the mirror away from her. "Okito! Don't do this to me, I need it." she whined. I giggled before looking back towards Taiga and Emori.

"Cho-chan, you spend alot of time with the taicho right?" Taiga asked, I nodded. That was a random question.

"Hai…nande?" I asked, slightly confused

"Has he acted ok around you?" Taiga asked "He seems like something's been bothering him." I licked my lips, thinking a bit.

"Ano…"

"_Shinji-kun…is something wrong?" I asked, running my fingers through his hair. He smiled slightly, keeping his arm rapped around my waist._

"_Nande?" he asked, still staring up at the stars. I shrugged, kissing his cheek._

"_You haven't seemed yourself." I said quietly "It's worrying me." He looked away from the sky, down at me laying on his chest, and our eyes locked._

"_I'm fine." he said softly _

_I shook my head, slightly angry that he was lying to me. We were currently at his "secret spot" staring up at the stars. It was the only real place that we were able to be physically close without getting stares from anyone, it was the only place we wouldn't get caught. I mean…his office was a safe place for us, but people came knocking on the door all the time interrupting our time together. His room or my room was just out of the question, people would definitely start talking if they saw me come out of his room late at night or early in the morning. So the only place we could be real with each other was here, it was the only place we could openly express our feelings._

"_What are you hiding from me?" I asked, still playing with his hair. He rolled his eyes saying_

"_Yer too perceptive." I shook my head again, that wasn't the reason I knew he was lying. Yeah, I was perceptive but he was able to lie to other people. Just not me._

"_No, you just can't lie to me." I said, slightly amused "You're bad at it." He raised an eyebrow._

"_Oh really huh?" I nodded, he was extremely bad at it. He smirked amused and turned over, straddling my waist and pinning my hands above my head. I felt my cheeks burning hot, and he leaned his body closer to mine. He stopped his lips beside my ear and said "Cho-chan, do you trust me?" I felt my cheeks burning even hotter and nodded without even thinking about it. I trusted him with everything, I could never not trust him. "I'm going to rip your clothes off, right now." he said seriously. I made an eek noise, and he stared right into my eyes. My heart was pounding against my chest, it felt like it was harder to breathe, the air felt so heavy; would he really? After a few seconds of intense staring he chuckled before releasing my hands and moving off me. I sat up and looked at him confused. "And ya said I was a bad liar." I wrinkled my nose angrily, he'd gotten me all nervous for nothing._

"_You jerk." I exclaimed, he grinned. "That wasn't nice." He laughed before taking my hand and gently pulling me back down beside him. I placed my head on his chest, still pouting, and he kissed my forehead._

"_Just showin' ya I could be a good liar." he said nonchalantly_

"_By saying that of all things?" I asked, still annoyed. He chuckled, nodding. I rolled my eyes, staring back up at the stars. "You're still lying to me." He sighed and said_

"_Cho-chan, let's just drop it." I shook my head, I needed to know what was on his mind._

"_No, I want you to tell me what's wrong." I said softly "We're supposed to trust each- other with stuff like this." He ran his fingers through my snow colored hair, still not saying anything. I wrinkled my nose angrily, he was going to tell me whether he wanted to or not; I knew the perfect way to get him to tell me too. I sat up pulling my hair out of the low ponytail. My hair flew around my face, we always ended up out here when the wind was blowing. I looked back at Shinji, and he moved his eyes to mine._

"_Cho-chan…are ya ok?" he asked, looking confused. I focused on making myself look at him as seductively as I could, but also with my same innocent type of look. That would definitely get him to spill his guts. He opened his mouth, trying to get some words to come out, and I pounced. With both my legs on either side of his waist and both my hands on either side of his head, I leaned close to him saying_

"_Shinji-kun, please. Talk to me." He looked lost for words, damn I'd surprised him. I leaned my face closer to him, my hair touching his chest and said "Please." He blinked before moving his hand, playing with a few strands of my hair._

"_I hate…how we hafta hide this." he finally said. I nodded, so that's why he hadn't seemed himself lately. "I know yer sister's wedding's in a couple days demo-"_

"_I get it." I said sweetly "I think I'll be stripped of my title as noble anyway, we just need to wait a few more days." He nodded, still looking unsure, and I smiled. "Don't worry, even if all this doesn't go the way we want I don't care. After Miyo's wedding, no more hiding." He looked at me, slightly shocked that I was so uncaring about everything, and I continued smiling. "I care about you so much, and I refuse to hide this anymore." He nodded, smiling, and leaned up meeting my lips. I smiled into the kiss, happy that I was with someone as wonderful as Shinji._

"He's seemed ok." I lied, scratching the back of my head in thought

_**There you go, lying to your friends again.**_

_I didn't finish what I was going to say, god Kurisutaru._

"I think he's most likely annoyed with all the paperwork he has. He hasn't really been keeping up with it."

_**You're still lying.**_

_I'm telling the partial truth, that has to count for something._

_**I guess, but why don't you just tell them the truth? They are your friends after all.**_

_I know that, things are just starting to get back to normal with me and Emori though. I don't want to screw that up anymore than I already have._

_**So you're saying if you let them know you're with Shinji then Emori will get all pissy and be mad at you again?**_

_Exactly._

_**Haha, jealous.**_

_Very._

_**But what are you gonna do after Miyo's wedding?**_

_I'll figure that out when the time comes._

_**Procrastinator.**_

_So?_

Taiga nodded, and I looked towards Hina who was still trying to get her mirror back from Okito.

"I need to head to his office anyway to turn in my paperwork from that last Hollow excursion. I'll ask him if he's doing ok."

_**Yet again, you lie.**_

_Did not, I'm going to turn in my paperwork._

_**And kiss?**_

_I hadn't planned on it._

_**Since you know it'll already happen?**_

…_Kinda…_

She laughed, and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Taiga nodded again, and I hopped up from my seat in the floor. I grabbed my paperwork before exiting the room and walking down the hallway. I bit my lip boredly, thinking about random things, and felt my shoulder bump something.

_**Watch out.**_

"Oh, gomen nasai." I said, turning to face the person I'd bumped into. I narrowed my eyes seeing it was Aizen, and his lips stretched into an amused smile.

In the past month, Aizen had been watching me more than he had before. I knew he had some suspicions about my relationship with Shinji, and I was trying my best to keep it a secret from him. I didn't really know what he would do if he found out we were together, so I decided it was best that he didn't know. Keeping a secret from Aizen though, was very near impossible. He'd just show up in random places all the time, and it was driving me insane. It was like, there was no place to get away from him around Seireitei. It always seemed like he was watching. He really needed to back off and leave us alone before I kicked his ass…or before Kurisutaru did.

I clenched my jaw and turned away from him, taking a step.

_**Watch yourself.**_

_I know._

I felt his fingers encircle my wrist and grimaced feeling how tightly he was squeezing it. I turned back to face him, and he stared down into my eyes.

"Nagataka-san, I've been looking for you for quite some time today." he said, sounding _oh so _polite. I nodded, like I even cared.

"For?" I asked, making my voice sound as sweet as possible. He narrowed his eyes, trying to figure me out, before saying

"I have a couple of letters for you." I nodded, seeing him produce the two letters. I took the letters from his fingers before trying to free my wrist, nothing.

"Did you need something else?" I asked darkly, his fake smile widened.

"You need to be more careful Nagataka-san." he advised "People may find out." I felt my heart speed up, and breathing seemed so much harder. Did he know? How would he have found out about me and Shinji?

"About?" I said quietly. He leaned down a bit, close to my ear, and said

"Isn't seeing a taicho forbidden for nobles?" The world seemed to go on pause, he knew. How did he know? When had he found out? We could be good friends for all he knew…what could I say? I couldn't let him figure this out, I needed to keep him guessing.

_**Bluff!**_

_I know, I know._

I managed to continue breathing before saying sweetly

"I have no idea what you're talking about Aizen-fukutaicho." He brought his lips back from my ear and stared me in the eyes again. I gave him the most innocent look I could muster, and his lips curved into a smile.

"Of course you don't Nagataka-san." he teased, I clenched my jaw angrily and jerked my wrist out of his grip.

"Arigato for the letters." I said, still sounding sweet. He smirked, knowing how upset he'd made me and said with fake politeness

"You're welcome Nagataka-san." I turned, walking down the hallway away from him.

_Is he following?_

_**No, but he's still staring. Don't go to Shinji's office.**_

_I wasn't planning on it after that, I think I just want to see what these letters are about. I'll visit him later. I've already seen him twice today anyway._

_**Good idea.**_

I walked a little way down the hallway before finally making it to the outdoor training grounds. I sat on the grass under a tree, pushing my hair over my right shoulder and opened the first letter.

_Nagataka Choyo,_

_We regret to inform you, that you're title of noble has been-_

I rolled my eyes, not even bothering to finish the letter. They'd been so childish that they had actually stripped me of my title as a noble, but did this bother me…not in the least. Now I wouldn't have to hide my relationship with Shinji anymore. The only thing that did bother me, was opening the second letter and seeing a hand written letter from my father. What did he want? He'd already stripped me of my title, what else did he have to say to me?

_Choyo,_

_Your mother and I have had a long and serious discussion about your behavior, before coming to this decision. It was a very hard choice to make, but it has to be done for the wellbeing of your sister. You are to come to the wedding, but afterwards you are never to step foot on Nagataka land again. You are not to approach your sister, you are not to write her letters, or have any form of contact with her…_

I clenched my teeth angrily, continuing to read the letter. The letter went on to say that I was a bad influence on Miyo and that my behavior was reckless. They'd overlooked it when I went to the Academy, but they understood that I would never change and all sorts of other bullshit. They even put in the letter that they'd taken away my inheritance, but I didn't really care about that. What right did they have to keep my sister from me? None, none at all. Miyo wasn't a child, she was older than I was. And _I _was the bad influence. I didn't know what I was going to do, but I was extremely pissed off.

I finally forced myself to my feet and trudged all the way back to the indoor training room. I knew all my friends would still be there, and I really needed their support right now. I cared a ton about Shinji, but he didn't need to get involved in this. He already had enough to deal with, without having to take care of me. I sighed looking at my paperwork, someone else could deliver it for me.

**Author's Note: Poor Cho, am I right? I actually got the idea from this chapter from the time when my parents tried to take me away from my best friend, it didn't happen but they tried. I thought it would be a pretty nifty thing to add in this chapter. And of course, I've already got some ideas for the next. Yay! But here we go...EIGHT REVIEWS=UPDATE!!! And thanks for the last reviews, I know how you guys feel. Dai's an asshole =p**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_"...We're all here for you. We're not going to leave you to deal with this on your own." he finished, I nodded not really listening to what he was saying._

_"Arigato for that." I said blankly, taking another shot. I tipped the bottle, frowning when that it was empty. "Nande?" I mumbled, wondering why the bottle just had to be empty. "Hey, bartender. I want another bottle!" I yelled. He came back, looked from the bottle to me, and finally looked at Taiga._

_"Did she drink all of it herself?" he asked in disbelief. Taiga nodded in confirmation, Emori nodded, agreeing with Taiga. "Choyo-san…I think you've had enough." he said. I shook my head disagreeing and brought out some money._

_"Give me another." I demanded, slamming it down. He put another bottle infront of me. He walked off to a bunch of new customers, and I filled my glass..._


	19. Chapter Nineteen: Over Doing It

I took another breath, letting out a sigh, before drinking my sake. I put down the shot-glass and looked at the bartender.

"Hit me again." I ordered. He nodded, putting more sake in my glass. I brought the glass to my lips and downed the drink. "Another."

"Cho-chan." Taiga said, looking at my twelfth shot "Maybe you should stop at twelve." I shook my head, downing the sake. This stuff was going fast, _too_ fast.

"Just leave the bottle." I ordered. The bartender looked at me reluctantly, and I brought out my ID card. "I'm old enough to drink, leave the fucking bottle." He let out a sigh before putting the bottle down and going to see another bunch of customers. I filled my shot glass, downing my thirteenth.

_**Damn, are you planning on stopping anytime soon?**_

_Fuck no._

_**Just don't overdo it.**_

_I can overdo it if I want. I'm fucking miserable right now._

_**You know what I mean.**_

_No…I really don't._

_**Don't overdo it by alot.**_

_How much is alot again?_

_**How much you normally drink plus five.**_

_So I can't go five over?_

_**Nope.**_

_Fuck you, I'm drinking as much as I want._

_**Cho-**_

I ignored Kurisutaru's plea and downed another shot. She didn't understand what I was dealing with, she didn't understand at all. I was going to drink how ever much _I _wanted, and there was no way she could stop me. Or anyone else for that matter.

"Cho-chan, listen to me." Taiga said, taking my hand that was holding the sake bottle; I glanced over at him. "You don't need to beat yourself up over this, drinking yourself to death won't change their mind." I shook his hand off, filling my glass again.

"I'm not drinking myself to death." I said bluntly, downing my drink seconds later. "I'm coping." He let out a sigh, looking at Emori sitting beside me for some support. Emori put his hand on my shoulder saying

"Cho-chan, I know I don't understand what you're dealing with demo…" He stopped seeing me down another drink before continuing. "Demo, that doesn't mean I can't have an idea. I know it must be hard, and you must feel-"

"Betrayed." I finished, downing another.

_**Stop playing the victim.**_

_I am a fucking victim so shut the hell up Kurisutaru. You don't know what I'm dealing with so keep your opinions to yourself._

"Hai, demo…we're all here for you. We're not going to leave you to deal with this on your own." he finished, I nodded not really listening to what he was saying.

"Arigato for that." I said blankly, taking another shot. He sighed, moving his hand off my shoulder. I tipped the bottle, frowning when that it was empty. "Nande?" I mumbled, wondering why the bottle just _had_ to be empty. "Hey, bartender. I want another bottle!" I yelled. He came back, looked from the bottle to me, and finally looked at Taiga.

"Did she drink all of it herself?" he asked in disbelief. Taiga nodded in confirmation, Emori nodded, agreeing with Taiga. "Choyo-san…I think you've had enough." he said, remembering my name from the ID card I'd showed him earlier. I shook my head disagreeing and brought out some money.

"Give me another." I demanded, slamming it down. He looked from me to the money, before taking the extra money I'd given him and putting another bottle infront of me. He walked off to a bunch of new customers, and I filled my glass for what seemed like the hundredth time...it was most likely the nineteenth or something though. I'd lost count at ten.

_**You're going to kill yourself.**_

_Shut up bitch._

"Cho-chan, don't drink anymore." Emori asked of me, watching me drink another.

"Why the fuck not?" I asked, still pissed off about my parents taking Miyo from me. I downed the alcohol, and Emori said angrily

"Because you're going to kill yourself if you drink anymore." I shrugged, not really caring, before having another shot.

"Like I give a fuck." I said nonchalantly. Emori made to get up, but I saw Taiga shake his head out of the corner of my eye. Emori nodded, staying put. I groaned, burying my face in my hands. "What the hell is their problem?"

"They're parents." Taiga replied "All parents are assholes."

"I wasn't talking to you." I mumbled, finally looking up from my hands. Taiga nodded and rubbed his arm looking embarrassed.

"I know Cho-chan, I'm just trying to help." he explained while I put more sake in my glass.

"Well stop." I demanded angrily "You're not helping, no one can help me." I downed the sake hearing

_**Cho, stop being like that towards your friends. They just want to help you feel better.**_

_Well I don't care. They can't help me so why are they even trying?_

_**Because that's what friends do for each other Cho, and these guys are your REAL friends.**_

_Woohoo! Let's give 'em a round of applause._

_**Cho-**_

I downed another drink, none of the sake seemed to be getting to me though. I could still hear her in my head, why wouldn't she just shut up?

"Cho…" Emori stopped, not knowing what else to say to me without being an asshole towards me. He didn't really like when people complained about how awful their lives were, but he somehow managed to deal with me up until now so I had to give him some points for that.

"We don't have to give you advice if you don't want us to." Taiga said "Demo…we still want to be here for you to lean on." Emori nodded in agreement. I downed my sake, not caring about what he was saying. I most likely would care when I got over being pissed off…and once the alcohol was out of my system.

"Great, arigato." I said rolling my eyes. I took another drink, feeling slightly lightheaded. This was the sixth bottle I'd had today after all. Before I'd actually went back to the indoor training room, I'd went to my room and downed two full bottles of sake and earlier that morning I'd had two. When I'd went to the training room a few minutes later I wasn't drunk, so Taiga didn't know that taking me to a bar was a bad idea. He was just trying to help me cope, but I bet by now he knew that he'd made a mistake taking me here. There was no way he was getting out of it though. Unless I passed out, I wasn't leaving for anything. I looked at the bottle before filling my glass and downing the shot.

'I might just wind up getting alcohol poisoning, but I don't care. I'll puke it all up in the morning anyway.'

_**Cho-**_

_Shut it!_

I rolled my eyes, drinking another shot of sake, and tipped the bottle again. I mentally cursed realizing it was empty, had I really been drinking that much? I didn't feel drunk, a little lightheaded but not drunk just yet. I pushed the empty bottle away from me and looked down the bar towards the bartender.

"Hey! More sake!" I yelled, he headed back towards me.

"Choyo-san, I think you've had enough." he said, I shook my head putting down more money.

"Get me another bottle." I commanded

"You've had enough." he stated, I glared angrily. Before I even realized it, I was holding onto the collar of his shirt, staring him in the face threateningly.

"Cho-chan." Taiga and Emori said in unison. I ignored them, still staring at the bartender.

"Listen, my fuckin' parents just disowned me. I need another fuckin' bottle." I said, slightly slurring my words. He gave me a look of sympathy before nodding and placing another bottle infront of me. I released his shirt and slumped back in my seat. "Arigato." I mumbled, filling my shot glass. He nodded, taking the money off the counter, and walked off. I downed the shot and looked to see both Emori and Taiga were talking over by the door. "Tch, whadda I fuckin' care if they're talkin' about me?" I mumbled, taking another shot.

Before I even came to realize how much I'd drank, I was feeling extremely lightheaded. But at the same time, I was feeling so much better. I knew I'd most likely drank alot because I didn't have a fucking clue what was going on. I hadn't drank this much in a good couple of years. By the time they arrived back at the table, five minutes had passed and the bottle was completely empty. I was already halfway through my eighth bottle when Emori took the bottle from me. I was completely trashed, and I was trying hard not to slur my words. But despite how I said them, I knew they were coming out slurred.

"Whacha doin'?" I asked, looking at him slightly angry

"You don't need anymore." he said, trying to sound like he could tell me what to do. I nodded, disagreeing with him. He couldn't boss me around.

"Yeah." I said annoyed, making a grab for the bottle "Give."

"No Cho-chan, you're trashed." I shook my head, I needed more. This was my only way of coping.

"Fuck no…give. Only had…two." I said, attempting to lie. He shook his head, and I stood up…or at least tried. I fell face first on the floor, both my friends hopping to my side. I didn't feel a thing when I'd fallen, but I knew there was probably a red mark on my forehead.

"Cho!" they exclaimed in unison. I felt myself being pulled into a sitting position, and I leaned my back against the bar closing my eyes. After a few minutes, I opened my eyes recognizing a voice, a voice that captivated me. I blinked a few times and smiled to myself a bit seeing Shinji talking with Taiga and Emori. I grabbed onto the top of the bar, pulling myself to my feet, and _literally _stumbled into his arms.

"Shinji-kun!" I exclaimed happily, rapping my arms around his neck. He smiled slightly, putting his arms around my waist to hold me up since I was too drunk to even _stand_ on my own. Let alone walk.

"Is she alright?" he asked, looking from me to Taiga

"She's had way too much to drink Hirako-taicho. Seven or eight I think." he replied. Shinji nodded, looking down into my eyes.

"Ya stupid girl, what're ya drinkin' yerself ta death fer?" he asked confused, I quickly shook my head; I didn't want him angry with me.

"No, not ta death." I disagreed "Jus…cope…Oka…Otou…Miyo…wedding…stupid nobles…" I couldn't keep my thoughts straight, I hadn't been this drunk in a while. He nodded, looking very concerned. "No worry." I asked of him "Don't…leave me." He nodded, holding me close to him.

"I'll never leave ya Cho-chan." he whispered in my ear. I smiled, hiding half my face in his haori. "I'm gonna take her back ta her room." he said to Taiga and Emori

"Arigato Hirako-taicho." Emori said bowing slightly

"We're sorry for taking her out Hirako-taicho, we didn't think she'd drink so much." Taiga said, bowing as well

"I understand, arigato." Shinji said looking back at me. I looked up from his haori, and he shook his head. "What the hell are ya tryin' ta deal with? Ya didn't tell me somethin' was goin' on."

"No…nothin' bad." I managed to say. He sighed, putting his arm under my knees. He pulled me to his chest, holding me bridal style, and carried me out of the bar. I was trying so hard to make my head form connected thoughts, but it just didn't want to work.

"What're ya not tellin' me Cho-chan?" he asked, looking down at me. I titled my head a bit and said

"Letters…letters." He looked at me confused, and I managed to drag my face up to kiss his cheek. "Read…letters." I asked of him. He nodded, most likely not understanding what I was saying, and said

"Ya stupid girl." I smiled a bit and brought my lips to his neck. I pressed my lips against his neck and felt his muscles stiffen.

"Shinji…love…" I mumbled. He looked down at me, locking his eyes with mine, and I smiled as best I could.

"You smell like sake." he said, grinning a bit. I managed to nod, kissing his neck again. "Cho-chan, stop it."

"Nande?" I asked, lightly pressing my lips to his neck "Like…?" He sighed, I knew he liked it. What man didn't like his neck being kissed?

"Cho, I'd rather we do this when yer not drunk." he admitted, I let out a short breath.

"Kay." I kissed his neck one more time, before leaning my head on his shoulder. "Letters…you'll read?"

"Yeah, I'll read the letters." he promised, I nodded a bit. I heard what sounded like a door being slid open, and I felt my body being put down. I rolled on my side, locking eyes with Shinji again.

"Dresser." I managed to say "Letters." He nodded, turning to my dresser. He picked up the letters I'd gotten earlier that day from Aizen, and I closed my eyes trying to clear my head a little…I knew it wasn't happening though. I was _way _too drunk.

"Ya lost yer title as a noble." he stated softly. I opened my eyes to find Shinji sitting next to me on the bed; I nodded in agreement.

"Took…Miyo…away." I said, forming a understandable thought. He nodded, tucking a lock of my hair behind my ear.

"I know doll. Ya need ta go ta sleep. Kay?" he said, moving his fingers down my cheek. I shook my head slightly, I wanted to spend time with him.

"No…want…you." I said quietly, trying to let him know I wanted him to stay with me. He looked at me confused, he didn't understand what I wanted. "Stay." I whispered. He nodded before shaking his head amused with me.

"Nagataka Choyo, you'll be the death of me." he teased.

"No…won't." I disagreed "Aizen." He looked at me, wondering why I'd said Aizen's name. "Bad…man." He smiled, nodding a bit.

"That's right Cho-chan." Shinji said, gently stroking my head. He didn't look convinced, he must've just thought it was drunk person mumbo jumbo.

"Bad man…no trust." I said, trying to get it through to him that Aizen couldn't be trusted. He nodded again, I didn't think I'd be able to convince him while I was drunk though. "Shinji…love…you." He smiled before pressing his lips to my forehead.

"I know Cho-chan." he said softly. I felt a smile tug at my lips and reached up, touching my fingers to his face.

"Don't…leave…alone…"

"I won't leave ya Cho." he promised, smiling a bit. I nodded, pulled him down slightly, and pressed my lips against his. He put his hand on my cheek, brushing my cheek with his thumb, and broke the kiss. He stared straight into my eyes and shook his head, still looking slightly amused with me being so drunk. "Cho, promise me ya won't get this drunk again."

"Cope..." I said softly, letting him know it was my only way of coping with all this. He grinned in amusement.

"I know Cho-chan, I know." he said, caressing my cheek. I smiled again, pressing my lips to his. He kissed me back, rubbing my cheek with his thumb. I smiled into the kiss, moving my hand to the back of his neck and parted his lips with my tongue. I felt him stiffen in surprise, and I ran my tongue along the roof of his mouth. I heard him let out a soft moan but next thing I knew, he pulled his lips back from mine.

"No." I said, slightly annoyed "Meany." He grinned and shook his head.

"I don't wanna do this when yer drunk." he said, repeating his words from earlier. I tilted my head as best I could, saying

"Nande?" He sighed, pressing his lips to my forehead.

"You won't remember this so I'll tell you. I love you Cho, that's why. I don't want to do something that we both won't remember, you're too drunk to even understand what's going on here." he said softly "I want everything we do, to be something we'll both always remember." I nodded, understanding a little of what he was saying, but I managed to recognize that there was no slang in his words. He was being completely serious, I wasn't too drunk that I didn't understand the seriousness of his words. "Ya understand, right Cho-chan?" I nodded, pulling him to lay next to me.

"Stay." I mumbled. He nodded, putting his arms around me.

"I won't leave ya." he promised. I smiled, burying my face in his chest. Before I even realized it, I was asleep.

**Author's Note: Poor Cho...she's so trashed. The hangover's definitely gonna suck for her. How sweet is Shinji? He wouldn't even think about taking advantage of her, there's not alot of guys like that anymore. But thanks alot for all the nice reviews I recieved for the last chapter. Aizen's such an ass, I hated him when he was first introduced in the anime. Even as a captain I didn't like him. Stupid Aizen...but yeah. EIGHT REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER.**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_I felt my blush spread further across my face as he stroked my cheek._

_"I have somethin' fer ya." I tilted my head to the side curiously, seeing him pull out an envelope. I felt my heart sink, not another letter. I didn't think I could deal with anymore bad news, especially not when I was sick like this._

_"Do I have to look at it?" I asked quietly, he nodded grinning._

_"I think you'll like what ya have ta read." he said amused. I nodded sighing to myself and took the letter from his fingers. I unfolded the letter, reading over the lines..._


	20. Chapter Twenty: A Killer Hangover

I groaned quietly, turning over on my side. All the noise outside my room sounded so loud, my stomach was churning, I felt so sick. What had I been doing last night? I thought for a second before it clicked.

'I went out with Taiga and Emori to that bar. My parents took Miyo away from me, and I tried to cope with it all by drinking. God I have such a drinking problem...what happened next? I drunk a whole bunch of sake…like nine bottles or something…then what? I fell…and Shinji showed up.' I opened my eyes a bit, looking over towards the only chair in my room. Shinji was sitting there, reading over the letters I'd gotten from Aizen yesterday. 'He stayed…just like he promised he would.' I smiled a bit and said softly

"Shinji." He looked up from the letters and smiled at me.

"Hey." he said, I knew he was trying to be quiet but everything was so loud. I had such a bad hangover…the lights were _really_ bright…I felt like I needed to puke too. He stood up from the chair and quickly walked over to my side. I smiled, feeling his lips against my forehead, and closed my eyes. "How ya feeling?"

"Shitty." I mumbled "How are you?" I opened my eyes, looking up into his grey ones.

"I'm fine, worried 'bout ya." he replied, grinning "Ya drank alot Cho-chan." I nodded in agreement.

"Hangover's suck." I complained. He chuckled, tucking a lock of my hair behind my ear. I smiled, moving my cheek against his hand. "You read the letters." He nodded.

"I can't believe they did that." Shinji said, scratching his head in thought "Strippin' ya of yer title as a noble." I nodded a bit.

"I'm not surprised, I'm just pissed they took Miyo from me." I said quietly, trying to ignore all the rumbling outside my door; it was so loud.

"It'll all be ok." he promised, I nodded.

"I know, we don't have to hide anymore." I whispered, he nodded. He had that same grin on his face I was so used to.

"That's a plus." he acknowledged. I smiled, running my fingers down his cheek.

"Shinji-kun." He tilted his head to the side, looking at me from a different angle. "Get down here and kiss me." I ordered. He raised an eyebrow and chuckled.

"Eh…since ya want me to, I'll hafta say no." he teased, I wrinkled my nose angrily.

"Get down here and kiss me, please!" I asked sweetly. He rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "Please, I'm gonna puke if I sit up so I'd like to kiss you before I do." He rolled his eyes again and bent down, kissing my cheek. "That's not my lips, asshole." He chuckled, kissing my cheek again.

"Someone's a lil mean this mornin." he played, I let out a frustrated breath.

"So? I'm hung-over, I have a right to be bitchy." I explained, meeting his eyes. He smiled slightly, gently pressing his lips against mine. I smiled into the kiss, putting my hand on the back of his neck, keeping his lips connected to mine. We kissed, for a few minutes I guessed, before he finally pulled his lips back from mine.

"I don't wanna leave ya Cho-chan…demo-" he said, I nodded understanding.

"I know, you have taicho stuff to deal with." He smiled apologetically and quickly kissed my cheek. I smiled, but my smile quickly faded from my face. I bolted from the bed, across my room into my bathroom, and barely made it to the toilet in time to puke my guts up. I coughed, disgusted with the taste of the bile, and Shinji came into the bathroom. He rubbed my back, waiting for me to cease puking, and finally said.

"I'll get Hina ta come take care of ya." I nodded in thanks, before my stomach jolted, puking up even more of the liquid nastiness. "Ya stupid girl, ya shouldn't have drank so much." I would've had a comeback to that, but my stomach just wanted to empty itself of all the alcohol. After what seemed like hours I finally stopped puking, and Shinji shook his head. "I'll be right back with Hina, stay right there." I nodded, knowing I didn't have the energy to move even if I wanted to, and felt his lips against the top of my head before he exited the bathroom.

I took some slow breathes, trying to calm myself down, and heard a giggle. Weirdly enough it was coming from outside of my head rather than inside. I moved my face up a bit and almost glared seeing Kurisutaru standing in the doorway. How the hell had she gotten outside my head?

"Kurisutaru." I mumbled, she rolled her eyes.

"You're such a baka." she said, flipping her hair over her shoulder. I didn't even have the strength to glare at her.

"What…do you want?" I asked, taking another deep breath "Come here to mock me?"

"Just a little." she said sarcastically "You shouldn't have gotten so drunk."

"Obviously." I muttered, why did she have to come to me just to preach?

"It was stupid and reckless, you coulda killed yourself." she ranted

"Duh." I managed to mumble

"You're lucky Shinji was there to take care of you through the night." she continued, ignoring my comment. "Any other guy woulda taken advantage of how hammered you were."

"Yeah yeah." I said, trying to ignore the feeling of my stomach churning. She glared slightly, I hated watching her glare. Those eyes of hers were so intimidating. She finally softened her look and shook her head.

"You worried me." she admitted "I was afraid for you." I felt my eyes widen in slight shock, she'd been _that _worried about me?

"Gomen." I apologized, I couldn't say anything else. My stomach couldn't take the rest of this shit in it. I felt a liquid ooze up through my throat and out my mouth into the toilet. God this stuff was so gross.

"I'll be yelling at you a little more once you're feeling better." she promised. I couldn't even nod, more puke.

"Oh god, Cho!" Hina exclaimed, running to my side. She knelt beside me, putting her hand on my shoulder. "It'll be ok, I'll take care of you." I coughed, glancing over in the doorway as Hina pulled my hair away from my face. Shinji was standing there, watching me with the most concerned look. I felt so bad for worrying him this much.

"Gomen." I apologized

"Arigato Hirako-taicho." Hina said, pulling my hair in a low ponytail. "I'll take care of her for the day."

"Arigato Hina." Shinji said, nodding to her. He looked back into my eyes before saying "You done yet?"

"Hirako-taicho!" Hina exclaimed, sounding upset. I nodded, knowing he wasn't trying to sound like a jerk about the whole situation. Shinji nodded, walking into the bathroom, and scooped me up into his arms. He carried me back to my bed and gently laid me down there.

"Hina, when she gets enough rest ta where she can move around, help her get a shower. Maybe go get her some water fer her stomach." he said, gently stroking my head. I nuzzled my head in his hand, happy to feel his touch.

"Of course Hirako-taicho. Could you stay another minute while I go get some water and an empty trashcan?" she asked, Shinji nodded. I heard the door slide open and close, I looked up into Shinji's eyes.

"I'll come see ya later tanight." he promised. I nodded, happy that I'd get to see him more than just once today.

"Arigato taicho." I whispered, smiling when he pressed his lips to my forehead. I giggled, and he rubbed his nose against mine.

"Yer so cute Cho-chan." he said grinning, I felt my cheeks heating up. I hadn't even been awake an hour, and he was already making me blush.

"Shinji!" I whined, sounding "cute." He chuckled, kissing my forehead again. "You're a meany-face."

"Yeah, says you. Ya have no idea what ya were doin' ta me last night, drivin' me crazy." he said, raising an eyebrow. I tilted my head slightly confused.

"Nani?" I asked quietly "I'm confused." He grinned, shaking his head.

"Nothin' ya need ta worry yerself over." he said, I wrinkled my nose.

"Demo taicho-" I stopped hearing the door slide open, and Shinji moved back from the bed.

"Feel better Cho." he said, sounding rather professional. I nodded, knowing there was nothing else I could say to him without Hina finding out we were together. He walked out of the room, and Hina quickly entered after he'd left.

"Feeling any better yet?" she asked, I shrugged. I felt about the same, shitty. She nodded, letting out a sigh. "God Cho, you look like shit." I nodded in agreement, I'd gotten a glance of myself when I'd went to puke and it was not pretty.

"Yeah…I really just want to sleep." I said quietly, she nodded.

"Get some rest, I won't leave your side." I nodded, closing my eyes. I needed to sleep before my stomach decided it wanted to puke stuff up again, and I really didn't want to deal with that right now.

I opened my eyes, looking over towards my chair. Hina was sitting there, flipping through a magazine.

"Hina-chan." I coughed. She looked up and sprung to my side, handing me the bottle of water. I sipped at the water, looking at her feeling a little better. "What's the hour?"

"About four or five." she replied, I nodded a bit. "Do you feel well enough to walk without needing to barf?" I nodded again, capping the water bottle. I slowly sat up, rubbing my face. She put her arm around my shoulders, helping me stand, and walked with me to the bathroom.

"I can do everything from here." I said, sitting on the side of the bath "Arigato Hina-chan." She nodded, rubbing the back of her neck.

"I'll pick out something for you to wear back to bed." she said, I nodded in thanks. She exited the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. I quickly stripped myself of my Shinigami uniform and hopped in the shower. I turned the knobs, allowing the cool water to run over my body. I felt so hot, like I was burning up. God I hated having hangovers…I was starting to think the sake wasn't worth it.

_**Hell yeah it's not worth it.**_

_You again huh?_

_**Yep, and I'm not leaving anytime soon chicky so you'll hafta suck it up and deal with me.**_

I rolled my eyes, running the shampoo throwing my hair.

_**Shinji was so worried about you, ya know?**_

_I know Kurisutaru._

I rinsed my hair, getting all the shampoo out of it and let out a soft sigh. This felt so good, I didn't feel _as_ nasty anymore. I quickly washed my body, turned the water off, and grabbed my towel. I dried myself off and pulled myself out of the shower. I looked at the clothes Hina had left for me and smiled to myself. I was lucky to have such a caring friend standing by me, speaking of friends I'd need to apologize to Taiga and Emori for being such a bitch towards them. I slipped on my underwear, my bra, and my flimsy purple silk nightgown. It wasn't all that long but whatever, mid-thigh level was long enough for me; I was sick after all. I stepped up to the sink and grabbed my toothbrush. I thoroughly brushed my teeth, trying hard to get the taste of puke out of my mouth. After I'd finished I ran a comb through my hair, before shaking the wet hair out of my face, and stepping out of the bathroom. I sighed and went back to my bed, slipping under the covers.

"Wow…I didn't have to tell you to get in bed." Hina said humorously, I rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, I feel like crap." I complained "You don't need to tell me to rest when that's all I really wanna do." She giggled, coming around to the bed.

"Aw, don't be so whiney. I'll braid your hair for you." she offered. I smiled sweetly and nodded.

"I'd like that, arigato." She smiled and pulled my hair out of the ponytail, beginning to braid it for me. "Hina-chan…life sucks." I said softly

"Emori told me what happened with your parents. I can't believe they took your sister from you." she said, sounding sympathetic. I nodded, I was still in slight shock about it all as well. "Demo…everything'll be alright. Don't worry." I nodded, thanking her for the support. "You need to seriously get some help though Cho, I'm not trying to upset you...but you seem to have a bit of a drinking problem." I glared slightly, what did she know? I was dealing with some serious shit right now, and she had no right to judge me.

"No I don't." I argued, she sighed.

"Cho, I know it must upset you to hear that, demo-"

"NO!" I interupted, glaring at her. "I don't have a problem, I can handle my liquor fine. I can stop whenever I want." She looked hurt by my harsh tone but still said

"Cho, I don't want to argue with you about this."

"Then don't." I said coldly. She narrowed her eyes and stood up.

"Fine, be that way. I'll just go." I nodded, happy to see her walk out of the room. I sighed to myself, what did she know? I could stop drinking whenever I wanted, I was in control of my drinking. Sure, I might have a little bit of a problem. It wasn't like I was an alcoholic or something, I just drank because I enjoyed it. She'd have to get over it. I looked over at my dresser, watching Kurisutaru look over the letters.

"God, this is intense." she mumbled, I nodded when she looked over her shoulder at me.

"Yeah…I hate this." I said quietly, she sighed.

"Assholes. I bet that stupid Dai suggested it." I clenched my jaw, he might have done just that. "Demo…don't worry. They're not worth you exerting so much effort over." she said, playing with a strand of her hair. I sighed, and she turned to face me. "Cho, eh…never mind. I don't think I need ta yell at ya anymore."

"Arigato for the consideration." I said sarcastically, she rolled her eyes.

"Any who, I'm gonna go. Get some rest." I nodded, watching her fade from the room. I sighed, sinking against my pillows. Today was shit, but thankfully the worst part of my hangover was over. I hadn't puked for a couple of hours so I was happy about that, sake didn't taste too good coming up. The next time I went out drinking, I'd be sure not to drink nine bottles. I heard the door slide open and quickly covered my body with the sheets, I was too self-conscious for my own good. I sank down into my covers, blushing when I realized it was Shinji. This was slightly embarrassing, he was here when I was only wearing a nightgown…_major_ embarrassment…for me at least. He smiled at me before closing the door, and he quickly crossed the room sitting on the bed beside me.

"How ya feelin' doll?" he asked grinning, I felt my blush heat up.

"Better." I replied. He reached his hand down, touching my face.

"Good." I felt my blush spread further across my face as he stroked my cheek.

"I have somethin' fer ya." I tilted my head to the side curiously, seeing him pull out an envelope. I felt my heart sink, not another letter. I didn't think I could deal with anymore bad news, especially not when I was sick like this.

"Do I have to look at it?" I asked quietly, he nodded grinning.

"I think you'll like what ya have ta read." he said amused. I nodded sighing to myself and took the letter from his fingers. I unfolded the letter, reading over the lines.

_Nagataka Choyo_

_I would like to congratulate you for showing such exceptional skills in the fifth squad. For this you have been nominated for a promotion to fukutaicho of the seventh squad, should you choose to accept…_

I looked up at Shinji, not even bothering to finish the letter and smiled at him.

"A promotion?" I asked, extremely happy about my _almost_ new seat. He nodded, grinning at me. I looked back down at the letter, a frown finally found its way on my face. "Demo…Shinji…I'd be away from you." The smile faded off his face, and he kissed my forehead.

"I know Cho-chan…ya deserve this promotion though. Ya've worked so hard, and I want ya ta have a seat ya deserve." he said, I licked my lips thinking.

"I don't want to leave you." I told him, he rolled his eyes

"It's not like you'll be goin' away ferever." Shinji said grinning, I giggled in agreement. "I'll still see ya all the time." I smiled and nodded. "And you'll even be attendin' all those taicho and fukutaicho meeting's." I bit my lower lip, smiling to myself.

"Alright…I'll do it." His grin widened, and he lightly kissed my lips. I smiled, kissing him back and tangled my fingers in his beautiful blonde hair. He put his arm around my waist, pulling me close to him. This was the most amazing moment, we hadn't shared a kiss this amazing since the first time we'd kissed; I never wanted it to stop. I moved my left hand from his hair to his face, lightly running my fingers down his cheek. He broke the kiss, looking straight in my eyes.

"Cho-chan." I felt my cheeks going hot, how did he manage to make me so nervous all the time?

"Hai?" I asked quietly, he smiled sincerely.

"Yer so amazing." I felt my blush heating up, how _did _he do this to me?

"Arigato Shinji-kun. You're much more wonderful though." I said softly. He chuckled, gently kissing my lips again.

"Nah." he mumbled against my lips. I giggled, closing my eyes. He was such an amazing kisser, I always forgot what I was thinking when I was kissing him. I'd even manage to forget about my parents and how much they despised me, how great was that? I pressed my lips harder against his, wanting there to be a little more passion in the kisses. Even though he was a great kisser, being careful and sweet could only go so far before it just got annoying. Don't get me wrong, kissing was awesome altogether. But I didn't like him being so careful around me, I wasn't going to shatter in a billion itty bitty little pieces just because he wanted to step up our relationship.

Apparently he got the message because next thing I knew, his tongue was rubbing against mine. I moaned quietly, pulling him closer to me, and rubbed my tongue back against his. This was a whole new feeling, I'd never experienced something like this before. I didn't really understand it, but I didn't need to. What's life without a little mystery, huh? I felt him running his fingers down my arm, his other arm still wrapped around my waist. It felt so nice, him holding me. It felt so right. Our tongues were dancing, battling for dominance, I had a feeling I wouldn't win though. This was the first _real _seriousrelationship I'd ever been in. I heard another moan come from my throat, and then he broke the kiss. What the hell was he doing? That was the most amazing kiss ever! I opened my eyes to find him smirking at me, then I felt my cheeks go hot.

'Aw, fuck.'

"Wow Cho-chan, I didn't think ya could be so aggressive." he teased, still smirking. I blushed darker, playing with a strand of his hair. He chuckled, amused at me being so embarrassed, and kissed my forehead. "Get some sleep, we'll talk tamorrow." I shook my head, rapping my arms around his neck.

"Don't leave." I asked softly "Please." He sighed, shaking his head.

"Cho…" He stopped seeing my puppy dog pout and rolled his eyes. "How can I say no ta that face?" he asked sarcastically. I giggled, pulling him down on the bed to lay next to me. He grinned, keeping his arm around my waist, and pulled me as close as possible. I blushed and felt him kiss my forehead again. "Oyasuminasai Cho-chan." I smiled in happiness.

"Oyasuminasai Shinji."

**Author's Note: Woohoo! Two updates in one day, I'm so proud of myself. Awww so cute! I loved writing this chapter...besides the hangover that is and that horrible fight with Hina. Those aren't ever any fun. Shinji's such a sweetheart, I love making him all caring and stuff. And they stepped up their relationship again, yayz! Thank you all for the lovely reviews, they really made my day. Drill time, EIGHT REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER!!!**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_I giggled to myself, twirling a strand of white hair around my index finger. I didn't think I could manage to argue with her today, it was supposed to be a good day. I glanced over at my promotion letter and smiled to myself. This morning when I'd woken up I'd went straight to Aikawa-taicho, letting him know I wished to accept the position of his fukutaicho. He was happy I'd chosen to accept and mentioned something about my welcoming ceremony being some time this coming week. I was so ecstatic about the whole thing, I couldn't believe I was becoming a fukutaicho. What made things bad though, was that I wouldn't be able to watch Aizen as closely since we weren't in the same squad anymore. True we were equals now, but I didn't think I'd manage to get the chance to go around the fifth squad as much. I'd figure something out eventually though, I was a pretty smart girl after all._

**__**

Ha ha! Aizen shall never stop us.

_What did you have this morning? Drugs?_


	21. Chapter Twenty One: Wedding

I looked at my reflection from all angles, studying my appearance. Today was the day of Miyo's wedding, and I had to make sure I looked absolutely perfect. I was determined to show my parents up, and I wanted to prove to them that I didn't need their money or any of that noble life shit. I could do fine on my own, without any support from them. I had Shinji, and that's all the support I would ever need. I took a breath, adjusting my fancy blue kimono, and grabbed a hair-bow. I pulled my hair up into a high, but loose, ponytail. Some of my hair fell around my face, giving it a messy but also elegant kind of look to it. I had a feeling Shinji would think I looked gorgeous, he always did…even when I was drunk.

_**Of course, he is your boyfriend after all.**_

_I know that…but I don't look pretty when I'm drunk. No one does._

_**I beg to differ.**_

I giggled to myself, twirling a strand of white hair around my index finger. I didn't think I could manage to argue with her today, it was supposed to be a good day. I glanced over at my promotion letter and smiled to myself. This morning when I'd woken up I'd went straight to Aikawa-taicho, letting him know I wished to accept the position of his fukutaicho. He was happy I'd chosen to accept and mentioned something about my welcoming ceremony being some time this coming week. I was so ecstatic about the whole thing, I couldn't believe I was becoming a fukutaicho. What made things bad though, was that I wouldn't be able to watch Aizen as closely since we weren't in the same squad anymore. True we were equals now, but I didn't think I'd manage to get the chance to go around the fifth squad as much. I'd figure something out eventually though, I was a pretty smart girl after all.

_**Ha ha! Aizen shall never stop us.**_

_What did you have this morning? Drugs?_

_**Nope, I'm straightedge.**_

_Now that's a lie._

_**Is not!**_

I sighed a bit and picked up Miyo's wedding present. I'd gotten her a rather nice bracelet, one of those sister charm things. It was really pretty, silver with two hearts on it. One with her name engraved in cursive, the other with mine. I knew she'd love it, despite how simple it looked. One, it was the thought that counted. Two, it was from me after all. And three, she'd been talking about wanting one of these things for ages. I carefully put the bracelet in the small square box and put the lid on. I grabbed the box, looked at my reflection one more time, and exited my room.

I walked down the hallway of the barracks, careful not to trip over my kimono. I hated fancy clothes so much, I was happy I wouldn't have to wear anything like this for a long time after the wedding. I smiled seeing the group and trotted over to stand beside Taiga. I wasn't suprised that Hina hadn't shown up, especially after I'd snapped at her like that. Okito wasn't here either, so I guessed he might've been angry with me as well. It wasn't my fault though, they'd just have to get over it. I wasn't going to stop drinking for anyone.

"Cho-chan, you look gorgeous." Emori said, hugging me. I smiled at the compliment, hugging him back.

"Arigato Emori-kun." I said sweetly. I looked at Taiga, and he whistled whistled.

"Wow, our little Cho's grown up so much." he teased, I shoved him playfully feeling a blush setting itself on my cheeks.

"Arigato...where's Okito-kun?" I asked, tilting my head to the side.

"Ano...he said he couldn't make it." Emori said, scratching the back of his head. I shook my head, knowing he wasn't telling me everything.

"He's angry with me right?" I asked sadly, Taiga hugged me.

"He's not angry, just...you know...he likes Hina alot, and-"

"I get it." I interupted, rubbing my arm. "No biggie." Taiga sighed, breaking off the hug.

"Damn, you're gonna get harassed like crazy by those nobles." he said, trying to steer my mind away from Hina and Okito.

"I lost my title as a noble so I wouldn't see why they would bother me." I said, rubbing the back of my neck

_**Let's see…ano? YOU'RE STUNNING!**_

_Can't you shut it for a minute?_

_**NEVER!**_

"Because you look beautiful, duh!" Emori said bluntly. I giggled to myself, I loved my friends so much. They were always so…I didn't know what to say they were besides great. I giggled again and looked down the hallway hearing

"Hikifune-taicho, why'd ya make me dress up?" Hiyori was whining, Hikifune laughed loudly in utter amusement. Hiyori was wearing a kimono, but not just any kimono. A _pink _kimono, hand picked by Hikifune-taicho. Hiyori wasn't too pleased about this, but she never went against Hikifune. She saw her as her mother, so she listened to her no matter what.

"To make you look pretty of course." Hikifune said, amused that her fukutaicho was all upset about her outfit.

"Wow, Hiyori actually looks kinda feminine." Shinji teased, that wasn't a good thing for him to say to her. She punched him in the face saying

"Oi, shut yer mouth dickhead!"

_**Heh, you're poor boyfriend's always gettin' beat up.**_

I giggled again at Kurisutaru's statement and turned my head hearing Taiga say

"Looks like they're havin' fun."

"Let's go see them." I suggested, tugging at Emori's sleeve. He rolled her eyes, nodding in agreement.

"Alright." he said, we walked down the hallway towards the taichos and fukutaichos.

"Goodness Cho, you look stunning." Rose said, watching us walk up

_**Obviously my little girl looks stunning.**_

_Yet again, when did I become your little girl?_

_**When I said.**_

_When was that?_

_**Well that one time…**_

"Arigato Otoribashi-taicho." I said sweetly, ignoring Kurisutaru talking. Hiyori glanced from Hikifune to me.

"Damn, I'm jealous again. She always looks good no matter what she wears. She coulda wore the fuckin' shihakushō, and she woulda still looked great. " she complained, Hikifune bonked her on the head.

"Shush." she said boredly, Hiyori didn't say another word. I was surprised at how loyal Hiyori was to her taicho, she must've really looked up to Hikifune. I smiled, glancing over at Shinji. He opened his mouth to say something, but Lisa said

"Congratulations on your promotion Cho, from seventh seat to fukutaicho is rather impressive."

_**Well duh! Cho's just that talented.**_

_Can you be quiet for two seconds?_

_**Nope.**_

I smiled, looking towards Lisa.

"Arigato Lisa-chan." I said, still smiling

"Who's fukutaicho are you becoming?" Emori asked, looking slightly shocked. Whoops, I hadn't gotten around to telling all my friends yet. I was so forgetful. Love raised his hand a bit, saying

"I've needed one for ages, Cho's perfect. Always does her paperwork, turns it in on time, strong enough, intelligent-"

"Except when she drinks." Taiga mumbled, I elbowed him in the ribs

_**She's got a point.**_

_Who's side are you on?_

_**I'm still debating.**_

"Play nice." Shinji teased, I giggled walking into his arms. He hugged me tightly, and I said

"I don't know how to play nice." He rolled his eyes, of course he didn't believe _that._

"I'll believe that, when I see it." I giggled, he always saw me as such a good girl. I stood on my tiptoes, gently pressing my lips against his.

"Holy fuckin' shit!" Emori shouted in shock

"Shut it." Taiga ordered "That's my line!" I giggled, breaking the kiss, and looked back towards my friends shocked faces with a blush on my cheeks. "When did this happen?" he asked, looking extremely shocked. I continued blushing, and Kensei walked over followed by Mashiro.

"Aww, Cho-chan looks beautiful." she sang "You're lucky Shinji." Shinji nodded in agreement, kissing the top of my head. I felt my blush darken, looking from Mashiro to Taiga

"A little over a month." I mumbled, slightly embarrassed. His jaw dropped, no lie. It _actually_ dropped. Emori's did as well…was it that much of a shocker?

_**Well yeah! You guys are polar opposites.**_

_You again huh?_

_**I've never went away.**_

_I was trying to pretend you had._

_**HEY-**_

I ignored her, focusing on what Emori was saying.

"How could you not tell me?" he exclaimed

"I was still a noble." I said, shrugging a bit "I wasn't supposed to-"

"Ya can talk about this later." Shinji interrupted "Let's get goin before we're late." I nodded in agreement, lacing my fingers through his. We all headed over to the wedding, handing in our invites, and watched the ceremony take place. After a good few hours Miyo was finally married and was surrounded by a bunch of her noble friends. I smiled feeling Shinji kiss my cheek and wrapped my arms around him, hugging him.

"So, you gonna approach your sister any time soon?" Kensei asked, looking from Miyo to me. I inhaled, thinking about it.

"I don't know." I said hesitantly "She looks like she's having fun with her noble friends."

"You haven't see her in a while though." Hachigen pointed out "You should go see her." I nodded, looking at Shinji. He pressed his lips to my forehead, then said

"Go see yer sis, I'll be waitin' right here." I nodded and glided across the room. I could feel all the nobles glares burning through me, but I somehow managed to ignore them. I nervously approached my sister, ignoring the fact that she was talking to a bunch of her friends and said timidly

"Miyo-chan?" She jerked around, smiling when she saw it was me.

"Cho-chan!" she exclaimed, rapping her arms around me in a tight hug. I smiled, burying my nose in her shoulder. She was still the same old Miyo, she hadn't changed a bit. I hugged her back just as tightly and heard her say "God, I've missed you so much." I nodded in agreement, not letting go of her. "I can't believe they took away your title, I told them not to but they wouldn't listen to me. I tried so hard Cho-"

"Nee-san, it's fine." I said quietly "I'm happy it's gone." I pulled back from my sister to look her in the face. She looked so beautiful, but so sad at the same time. Why couldn't she just be happy, this was her wedding day. She didn't need to be upset over me, I was perfectly fine with not being a noble anymore. She of all people should've known that.

"Cho, you look beautiful." she said smiling. I nodded, thanking her.

"Arigato Miyo-chan, you're the more beautiful one though." She shook her head disagreeing with me, but before she could say something I held the box out to her. "It's your wedding present." Her smile widened, and she took the present from my fingers. Even though she wasn't supposed to open any presents yet, she still opened mine because I was her sister…not to mention her complete and total best friend. She took the top off and looked up from the box, her eyes sparkling.

"Cho, it's beautiful." she exclaimed, hugging me again "I'll never take it off." I smiled hugging her back before she put the bracelet around her wrist.

"I hoped you'd like it." I said softly, she nodded.

"I absolutely love it." she said, sounding extremely happy. I smiled, taking her hands in mine.

"Miyo-chan, I want you to promise me that you'll be happy no matter what." I said seriously, she looked at me confused.

"Of course Imouto." she said, smiling a bit "How can I not be happy? I'm married to the most wonderful man, and I have an amazing sister that loves me. What could be better?" I smiled slightly, nodding a bit. I couldn't tell her about not being aloud to write her anymore, it'd break her heart. She hugged me to her, holding me the way she used to when we were little girls. "I'll write you." she promised "Write me back, immediately. My secret servant will make sure to get it to me, our parents can't take you away from me." My eyes widened in shock, she knew and she wasn't going to listen to them. I felt tears well up around my eyes and buried my face in her shoulder.

"Ok Miyo." I whispered happily. She hugged me again, before pulling me back from her shoulder and wiping my tears from under my eyes.

"Now go see that boyfriend of yours, give him a big kiss right infront of the parents. Piss them off to no end." I giggled in agreement, hugged her one more time, and made my way back to Shinji. I smiled when he put his arms back around my waist and kissed his cheek. I could just feel all the eyes staring into my back, the nobles were all in plain shock that I was being so…"disrespectful" towards my parents by doing something like this. I didn't care though, I wasn't a noble anymore and technically they weren't my parents. They'd disowned me anyway, I didn't have to care about anything concerning nobles anymore. I didn't have to follow their laws.

"Choyo!" I looked over and raised my eyebrow at my so called father.

"Nagataka-san." I said, refusing to call him father. He wasn't my father anymore, he never had been.

"What do you think you're doing, embarrassing me like this?" he hissed, I glared

"Well, I'm actually hugging my boyfriend. I don't understand why that would offend you since I'm no longer your daughter." I said, sounding cold. He clenched his fists, staring at me angrily. "We were just leaving anyway, would you mind telling your wife hello for me?" He turned, stomping off in the other direction angrily.

_**Oh, go Cho! Go Cho, go Cho, go Cho!**_

I giggled at Kurisutaru's chanting and looked up into Shinji's eyes.

"Ya really don't know how ta play nice, do ya?" he teased, grinning

"Nope, not with them anyway." I said cutely, pressing my lips against his

"Eek! So cute!" Miyo sang. I broke away from Shinji, looking at my sister. "There's gonna be another wedding." I felt my cheeks go hot, burying half my face in his haori. Shinji smirked saying

"Eh, I think we'll wait a while fer that one." I blushed darker before I slipped out of Shinji's arms to hug my sister.

"Bye Cho-chan." she said, sounding all enthusiastic "I'll write you soon." I nodded, smiling at her.

"Ok, later Miyo." Shinji took my hand, and we walked off the Nagataka grounds. I knew that would be the last time I'd ever be there, and frankly…I didn't give a shit.

**Author's Note: Mwhahaha, Cho's so awesome. Standing up to her parents AGAIN! Major rebel, let me tell ya. Yay for Cho! I thought the sisterly bond was rather important for this chapter, it proved how no matter what their parents do, they could never keep Cho and Miyo apart. My sister and I are the same way, I love her so effing much =] Yeah, thanks for all the reviews and here comes the preview. EIGHT REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER!**

_PREVIEW!!!_

__

**Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah!**

"Therefore, former seventh seat of squad five, Nagataka Choyo, is fukutaicho of the seventh squad." Yamamoto said, the echo of his cane clicking against the ground bounced off the walls. I lowered my head, feeling my cheeks going hotter than they had been during this entire meeting. I glanced up through my bangs, staring at the Soutaicho. All eyes were focused on me, and damn was this making me nervous.

"Arigato gosaimasu, Yamamoto-Soutaicho." I said, blushing bright red behind Love...


	22. Chapter Twenty Two: Promotion

_**Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah!**_

_Kurisutaru shush!_

_**Demo, it's soooo boring.**_

_I don't care how boring you think it is, stop complaining. _

_**DEMO-**_

_You've wanted me to go up a seat for months, now that I'm going up like…five you're still not happy._

_**It's this speech though, it's killen me!**_

_No it's not, just deal with it. It's my promotion speech._

_**Then shouldn't you be listening?**_

_CRAP!_

I snapped my attention away from Kurisutaru and focused on what Yamamoto-Soutaicho was saying, he was the more important person here after all.

_**I resent that.**_

_Shut it._

"Therefore, former seventh seat of squad five, Nagataka Choyo, is fukutaicho of the seventh squad." Yamamoto said, the echo of his cane clicking against the ground bounced off the walls. I lowered my head, feeling my cheeks going hotter than they had been during this entire meeting. I glanced up through my bangs, staring at the Soutaicho. All eyes were focused on me, and damn was this making me nervous.

"Arigato gosaimasu, Yamamoto-Soutaicho." I said, blushing bright red behind Love. Yamamoto nodded, dismissing us all from the meeting, welcoming ceremony…whatever you wanted to call it. I almost gasped in surprise when Love walked away to talk to Kensei, why was he leaving me all alone over here? Before I knew it, I was surrounded by all the fukutaichos.

"Congratulations Nagataka-san." I nodded to Unohana's fukutaicho…what was his name again?

"No need to be so formal. It's Cho, we're all equals now, right?" I said softly, rubbing my arm self consciously. I glanced at the ground, then glanced back up at the fukutaichos surrounding me.

"My apologies." he said…OH! Now I remembered, his name was Yamada Seinosuke. He helped me find the fifth squad back when I was just a little girl.

"Oh it's no big deal. I just hate my last name." I said sweetly

_**I would think you still would after last week.**_

_How could I forget?_

"I would to, after my parents disownin' me like that." Hiyori scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest; I shrugged.

"It's not so much that, I just think my last name sounds weird." I said honestly, everyone sweat dropped.

_**I think you literally made their brains turn to mush.**_

_Shut up, I did not!_

_**And they're not replying because…why-**_

"Well…I guess that's a good reason." Kaien said, chuckling a bit, I nodded in agreement.

_Ha ha! Take that Kurisutaru._

_**Watch your mouth chicky.**_

I talked a bit with the fukutaichos, not really about anything big. The first few things we discussed was them saying that if I had any questions to come ask them, that any of them were willing to help. After that we just joked around, laughing a bit, talking about random stuff. They were all really great to talk to, so I'd be sure to ask any of them for help if I had problems with my job. A while had passed, perhaps an hour or so, and I finally managed to escape from all of them with Lisa and Hiyori.

"So, ya all wanna go drink or somethin' tanight?" Hiyori asked "Celebrate yer promotion?"

_**Don't you dare!**_

I nodded enthusiastically, ignoring Kurisutaru. I loved drinking…even after that bad hangover of mine, I couldn't stop drinking. I just loved sake a little too much. It helped me relax and let loose. Hopefully after I got used to not being a noble I wouldn't have to drink to relax myself, until then I knew I couldn't stop though. It was my only escape.

"That sounds great." I said sweetly, twirling a strand of my white hair around a finger.

"Don't drink eight bottles Cho." Lisa said, sounding amused. Apparently news had traveled fast about my love for drinking, ah well. It didn't bother me in the least. I shrugged to myself, grimacing a little.

"I won't, maybe just six or seven." I joked, giggling a bit. Hiyori rolled her eyes while Lisa giggled to herself in amusement. I smiled, glancing over towards Shinji. Aizen was standing behind him respectfully, as he talked with Kensei and Love. What was Aizen, some shadow? Did he never socialize with the other fukutaichos, or did he always just stand behind Shinji like some stalker?

_**I'm leaning more towards the second, dear one.**_

_Me too, it's like…he's so creepy._

_**Very true indeed.**_

_I need to find some things out, hold on._

"Hey Lisa-chan?" I asked, looking back at the girls.

"Nani?"

"Does Aizen-san never welcome a new fukutaicho or something?" I asked, making my voice sound more innocent than normal. Lisa shrugged, saying

"He's a weird one. He always welcomes them after the ceremony, doesn't want to smoother them with too much attention like everyone else I guess. He's always been that way though, even when I became fukutaicho." I nodded, contemplating on what to do about this situation.

_**I think you should approach him while he's around Shinji. Let me study him a little bit…**_

_Ok, I think that might be a good idea._

_**Hey yo, pay attention to your friends.**_

"So ya wanna meet at the White Lotus?" Hiyori asked, snapping my attention away from daydreaming.

"What time?" Lisa asked, looking at the cover of her book.

"How 'bout eight or somethin' like that?" Hiyori suggested, we both nodded.

"That sounds great." I said sweetly. "Is the whole gang coming?" She shrugged, not really looking all that interested.

"If they want. Ya can invite Shinji if ya want, Cho. I'm not talkin' ta that dickhead." she said, putting her hands behind her head

"Hiyori, come on." Hikifune ordered, popping up behind her

"Hai taicho." Hiyori said, putting her hands down at her sides

"Congrats Cho-chan." Hikifune said, smiling at me. I smiled back a bit, scratching my head.

"Arigato Hikifune-taicho." She nodded and walked out with Hiyori hot on her trail. I giggled a bit and looked over at Lisa. She was still looking at the cover of her book. "New book Lisa-chan?" I asked, she nodded.

"My taicho got it for me…dork." she mumbled, snickering a bit. I smiled, and she finally looked up from her book. "Speaking of my taicho…he has paperwork." Not good, she sounded very evil...like she was up to something. "I'm dragging his ass back in that office and making him do it."

"Good idea, I think I'm going to let the group in on our drinking thing tonight." I told her, she nodded.

"See ya." Lisa walked off, hitting Kyōraku upside the head with her book. I giggled watching her yell at him and finally trotted over to my new taicho.

_**Aizen's watching.**_

_Good for him, you watch him like you wanted._

_**Geez, someone's-**_

I ignored her annoying voice and avoided looking at Aizen standing behind Shinji. I stopped beside Love, smiling a bit, and looked around at all of the men. Kensei and Mashiro were missing, where'd they run off to?

"Aikawa-taicho?" I asked, putting my hands behind my back, he raised an eyebrow. "Where's Mashiro-chan and Kensei?"

"They left for a mission." Love explained, I nodded saying sweetly

"Ano…well…Hiyori, Lisa, and myself are going drinking tonight so-"

"Drinking again?" Shinji asked, raising an eyebrow; I nodded giggling to myself. "Yer gonna get alcohol poisoning 'fore it's over." I shrugged, still smiling.

"Nope, I'm only drinking seven tonight." I joked. Shinji coughed, covering up where he just snorted, and I giggled again. I rocked back and forth on my heels saying "You're all invited of course."

"I think we'll all show up." Rose said, implying that they enjoyed drinking as much as I did.

"Alrighty." I said sweetly

"Anyway, we should prolly get back ta the squad." Shinji said, stretching his arms above his head

"C'mon Cho, let's get goin too." I nodded to Love and turned with him, following behind him. Shinji walked beside Love, conversating with him. Aizen walked beside me, following Shinji. I rubbed my arm and glanced at Aizen.

_**Don't be scared, he can't do anything around the taichos.**_

_Right…that still doesn't stop me from remembering how scary he is when they're not around._

_**It'll be fine, just breathe.**_

"It's going to be so different with you gone from our squad Nagataka-san." Aizen said, sounding polite. I put on my sweet smile, nodding a bit.

"Yeah, I miss it already. Demo, you're an awesome taicho." I said to Love, he looked back at me smiling. I smiled back and looked at Aizen. "And by the way, stop with the Nagataka-san stuff. We're equals, it's Cho." I almost smirked to myself at how manipulative I was being and added "Sousuke." His smile seemed to widen, and I resisted the urge to latch onto Shinji's arm like a scared little girl. This man was too creepy, he wasn't even doing anything bad and it was still scaring me.

"Of course, Cho." he said, still sounding formal and polite. I nodded, looking away from him. I smiled feeling Shinji grab my hand and pull me beside him. I looked up at my former taicho, smiling a bit.

"Cho-chan?" Shinji said, keeping his arm around my waist. I smiled, tilting my head to the side to stare at him.

"Hai Hirako-taicho?" I asked, blushing dark red. He grinned, planting a kiss on my cheek. I felt my face burning hotter, and Love groaned.

"C'mon Shinji, you're gonna be distracting my fukutaicho all day by doing that." he complained, Shinji smirked.

"Can't help it Love, she's gorgeous." Shinji said, kissing my cheek again. I giggled, poking his cheek. "I'll come pick ya up a lil before eight so we can head ta the White Lotus." I nodded, almost pouting when I realized we'd reached the area where we had to part ways.

"Ok Hirak…Shinji." I finished, seeing the glare he had when I started saying the taicho thing. He smiled, taking my face in his hands, and lightly pressed his lips against mine. I felt my cheeks go hot, but I still kissed him back. "Hey!" I pouted feeling Love grab my arm and drag me away from Shinji. "I wasn't finished with him." I complained, Love chuckled. Shinji grinned, walking away with Aizen following behind him.

"Get over it, kiss him all ya want later. Now, you have paperwork to do." he said, I cringed. Great…more paperwork.

**Author's Note: So now Cho's a fukutaicho, after a good eight months worth of training she's been promoted. How strong and awesome is she huh? Now she's on equal ground with Aizen, and she's so ready to kick his scrawny ass. Of course she has to be incredibly sweet around everyone else though, but she's determined to figure Aizen out. I'm talking to much, FIVE REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER! Thanks for reading =]**

_PREVIEW!!!_

**_Oh no._**

_"Cho." I turned, narrowing my eyes at Aizen._

_"Sousuke, did you need something?" I asked, sounding sweet…as usual. He handed a report to me, not smirking at all. Was he planning something?_

_"Hirako-taicho asked me to give you this for Aikawa-taicho." he said, sounding serious. I nodded, wondering why he wasn't trying to jerk me around, or mess with my head like he normally did. Something was going on, and it scared me that I didn't know what it was. He was just standing there, with an emotionless expression on his face. There was no smirk, no amusement twinkling in his eyes, nothing. He was hollow, and it was extremely intimidating._

_"Arigato." I said nicely. I turned, taking a few steps down the hallway that led out of the fifth squad._

**_Cho, watch-_**

_I felt Aizen's fingers close around my upper arm and the next thing I knew, I was pinned against the wall..._


	23. Chapter Twenty Three: Blackmail

"Cho." I looked up from my desk, my eyes moved to Love who was sitting behind his desk.

"Hai Aikawa-taicho?" I asked, lowering my pen. He held a folder out, and I quickly hopped to my feet. I crossed the office, grabbing the folder.

"There's reports in there that need to go to all the taichos, mind delivering them for me?" he asked, I shook my head.

"Of course not taicho, I'll go right now." I said sweetly, he nodded moving his eyes back to the manga he was reading. I turned on my heel, heading towards the door.

"And Cho." I looked back, catching the book he threw at me. I looked at the cover, a manga? "Give that to Rose won't ya? He's been wanting to read it for a while." I nodded, smiling a bit.

"Hai Aikawa-taicho." I slid the door open, walking out of his office, and quickly shut it. I opened the folder, seeing who was ontop of the report list.

'Hmm, this one goes to Kyōraku-taicho. Alright, I guess I need to go see him first.' I nodded to myself, closing the folder, and turned in the direction of the eighth squad. I stared up towards the sky, seeing how dark it was getting. The fukutaichos and taichos were the only ones that normally stayed late so I wasn't expecting to see anyone around the place. I wrinkled my nose, almost tripping over my own feet, and groaned to myself. 'Geez, why am I such a klutz?'

_**That shall remain unanswered for now.**_

_How come?_

_**I said so…**_

_And that makes sense…?_

She didn't say anything, and I giggled to myself in amusement. Poor Kurisutaru, I confused her so much sometimes. Eh, she deserved it though. I was making up for all the times she'd been a bitch towards me by confusing her shitless. It was pretty fun.

_**Shut it Cho.**_

_Tsk, tsk. Usually I'm the one that says that._

_**Eh bite me.**_

_Ew, no._

_**Psht.**_

_Was there something you wanted to talk about anyway?_

_**Uh…oh yeah!**_

I rolled my eyes, sliding open the door to Kyōraku-taicho's office. I peaked in, and Lisa looked up from her reading.

"Hey Cho." she said "What's up?" I walked into the office, opening up the folder again, and pulled out the report for squad eight.

"This needs to go to Kyōraku-taicho." I said sweetly. She nodded, taking the report boredly.

"I'll be sure to give it to him, I can't guarantee he'll read it though." she said, closing her book. She sighed, beginning to read the report. "I'll see you later since it looks like I'm the one that's meant to read this." She rolled her eyes sarcastically, muttering "Stupid taicho." I giggled, exiting the office. I looked back down at the reports hearing

_**HELLO? Pay attention to me.**_

_Nani?_

_**Aizen.**_

I snapped my head up from the report, sighing in relief when I didn't see Aizen. Why'd she scare me like that?

_What was that for._

_**No, I meant I wanted to talk about him.**_

I nodded, glancing at the next report, and heading over to squad nine. I listened to her, waiting for her to say what she wanted.

_**We really need to be careful, he's up to something.**_

_Kurisutaru I know that. Why else do you think I'm scared shitless and keeping myself as far away from him as possible…except when I'm forced to play this little game of his._

_**No need to be sarcastic, but I have a feeling that something's changed.**_

_Huh? Nande?_

_**It seems like…I don't know how to explain it.**_

_Try._

_**I'm working on it…ok. We obviously know he wants to use your innocence to his own advantage, but we don't know what for. We've been contemplating over this for months now. He hasn't been near you as much since you and Shinji have been out in the open about your relationship, but he's still slithering around here. I don't know why, but I'm getting this gut feeling that he's going to try something soon.**_

_How soon do you think?_

_**I don't know. You remember Shinji mentioning that he caught Aizen spying on Urahara Kisuke not too long ago?**_

_Yeah, I felt so bad for him. Kisuke's a really nice guy, and he seems just so laidback. I feel bad for him, Hiyori's really giving him a hard time. She's so upset about Hikifune-taicho leaving, and she doesn't know how to handle all this._

_**Yeah, but anyway. If Aizen is sneaking around spying on taichos then something has to be up.**_

_Mhm, we never thought about it that way. Demo…I don't know what he could be up to._

_**Me either…damn it. Deliver the report.**_

I sighed, sliding open the door to Kensei's office, and poked my head in. He looked up from yelling at Mashiro and said

"Do you need something Cho?" I smiled, entering the office, and Mashiro waved.

"Hi Cho-chan." she exclaimed, smiling. I smiled back, walking closer to Kensei's desk.

"Konnichiwa Mashiro-chan, Muguruma-taicho. Ano…I have a report from my taicho for you." I said, pulling the report out. I handed it over to Kensei and he nodded, thanking me.

"Arigato Cho." I nodded, stepping out of the room.

"Who's next." I mumbled, looking at the reports. "Ah, it's Rose." I smiled, knowing Rose would be happy to receive the manga I had from Love, and head over to the third squad. "You were saying Kurisutaru." I said out loud, no one was around me so I could say stuff out loud to her. No one would look at me funny.

_**Right, but we need to watch ourselves. We can't let him pull us around and trick us into anything.**_

_Demo…I don't understand how he'd manage to trick us. We're pretty darn smart._

_**Very true…let me do some more thinking, and I'll let you know when I come up with something.**_

I nodded to her, finally walking onto the third squad's barracks. I looked down the hallway before I head in the direction of Rose's office. I stopped infront of the door, slid it open, and looked inside the office. Rose looked up from plucking on his guitar, smiling at me.

"Konnichiwa Cho-chan." I giggled, smiling. I really liked Rose, he was so laidback and awesome. Just like my taicho.

"Hi, I have a report from Aikawa-taicho." I told him, stepping across his office. He nodded, taking the report from me. "And he wanted me to give you this." I handed him the manga, and his smiled widened.

"Arigato Cho-chan." he said, placing his guitar up against his desk. He opened up the manga and said "For once he hasn't ruined a manga for me." I giggled a bit, before I walked out of his office, knowing he wanted to read his manga in peace. I looked to the next report, smiling as I did so. It was supposed to go to Shinji. I giggled to myself happily, shunpoing over to the fifth squad. I walked the familiar hallways, smiling in bliss. I literally ran to the door of his office and quickly slid the door open. Shinji looked away from talking to Aizen, his frown turned into a grin.

"Cho-chan." he said, sounding extremely happy to see me. I giggled, skipping into the office, right into his arms.

"How are you Shinji-kun?" I asked, hugging him.

"Eh, ya know." I giggled and glanced over at Aizen.

"Konnichiwa Sousuke." I said politely, he nodded smiling.

"I'll leave and let you both have some time together." he said, sounding sincere. I almost rolled my eyes at the fakeness of the supposed "nice" gesture and smiled.

"Arigato Sousuke." I said, turning my gaze back to Shinji. His grin widened when he ran his finger down my cheek, causing my cheeks to heat up. I heard the door slide shut and said "I have a report for you." He wrinkled his brow sighing and took the report, throwing it on his desk.

"The report can wait." he said, pulling my lips against his. I smiled into the kiss, feeling the folder slip from my fingers, and wrapped my arms around his neck. He kept one of his arms around my waist, holding me against him, and ran the back of his hand down my cheek. I giggled, moving my fingers into his hair. He turned us in some direction, and I felt my lower back bump against the desk. Now he was trying to be all dominate, why did all males like to do that?

_**It's boys for ya sweetie, they're all weird like that.**_

I moaned softly, feeling him nibble on my lower lip and opened my eyes when he pulled back. I blushed seeing him smirking at me and lowered my head slightly embarrassed. I didn't understand why I got so embarrassed anymore, we made out all the time so why did I _still_ have to get embarrassed after months worth of dating him?

"Aw, Cho-chan looks embarrassed." he teased, I wrinkled my nose.

"Only cause you're mean." I whined cutely. He chuckled, roughly pressing his lips against mine. I pressed my lips back against his with equal force, if not more, and bit down on his tongue. He groaned pushing me harder against the desk. Our lips were glued together, our tongues dancing, it was definitely a really passionate kiss. Perhaps the most passionate we'd every shared, but now I was feeling like we were being watched. It wasn't good at all. I moaned again feeling his hand slide up my shirt to my stomach, and he lightly ran his fingertips across my stomach. Ok, this was not fair in the least. How did he manage to get me to feel this way about him? He pulled back from my lips, lightly pressing his lips against my neck. Now this was something different, he'd never kissed my neck before. I groaned softly, still holding onto his hair, as he lightly bit down on my neck. This was _definitely _different. "Shinji…I…need to go." I managed to get out. He chuckled, continuing to kiss my neck.

"I don't want ya to." he said, running his hand down my side. I wiggled a bit, knowing I needed to get back to delivering the reports, but my body didn't really want to listen to my brain.

"Demo…taicho…" I stopped, gasping for air. This was _way_ new to me, and I couldn't really control myself. It all just felt so nice, so right. I whimpered in protest hearing a knock at the door. Shinji sighed, placing on last kiss on my neck, and turned to face the door. I slipped away from the desk to picking up the reports that had fallen out of the folder, not understanding in the least how he managed to get me to feel this way.

"Hirako-taicho, I have a letter of resignation from-" Aizen started, having just entered the room

"Resignation?" Shinji questioned, interrupting him. "Who's resigning?"

"Haruhide Hina." Aizen responded, I looked up from the floor.

"Hina-chan's resigning?" I asked in shock. "Nande?"

"Pregnancy." Aizen said seriously, my jaw dropped.

"She's pregnant?" I exclaimed, hopping to my feet. "Oh my gosh, where is she? Did she already head home, oh she's so dead for not telling me this. Where the hell's Okito? He better not have left." I looked at Shinji, grimacing a bit. "Gomen Shinji, demo I need to go strangle some of my friends before they leave." I quickly kissed his cheek and bolted from the office. I ran down the hallway, towards the training room. I couldn't believe Hina was pregnant, I knew we were still fighting and all but she could've told me. Okito could've told me, that jerk. He was dead. I skid to a stop infront of the door and jerked it open. "Okito!" Okito looked away from Emori and at me.

"Hey Cho." I ran over to him, slapping him across the face.

"Why didn't you tell me Hina-chan's pregnant?" I asked, watching him rub his jaw. He shrugged, grimacing a bit.

"Gomen Cho, we just found out last week." he said. I crossed my arms, waiting for him to give me some type of explanation. "She knew she couldn't stay in the Gotei 13 while she was pregnant so she had to resign."

"How could you get her pregnant?" I asked, shaking my head.

"Yeah, haven't you heard of condoms?" Emori asked, I felt my cheeks go hot at his bluntness.

"Emori." I shrieked "That was uncalled for." Emori laughed, putting an arm around my shoulders.

"Still innocent in that aspect huh Cho-chan?" he asked. I rolled my eyes, shoving him off me.

"Shut it." I snapped, looking back at Okito. "I'm not done with you."

"I know Cho, demo…I need to get home to Hina-chan. We need to tell her parents…and my parents." Okito said, grabbing his Zanpakuto from off the floor. I lowered my head, sighing.

"Fine, be expecting more tomorrow." I warned, he nodded. "See you guys later, I have some reports to deliver before my day's over." They both nodded, and I walked out of the training room. I sighed, walking down the hallway of the fifth squad. I couldn't believe that Hina was pregnant, this was so weird. Miyo was already a couple of months pregnant now, I was pretty excited that I was going to be an aunt, but it was pretty astounding. I didn't think Miyo would have children but apparently she'd changed her mind. I sighed, shaking my head of the thoughts, before looking back down to the reports.

'Alright, so I need to deliver one to Kuchiki-taicho.'

_**Oh no.**_

"Cho." I turned, narrowing my eyes at Aizen.

"Sousuke, did you need something?" I asked, sounding sweet…as usual. He handed a report to me, not smirking at all. Was he planning something?

"Hirako-taicho asked me to give you this for Aikawa-taicho." he said, sounding serious. I nodded, wondering why he wasn't trying to jerk me around, or mess with my head like he normally did. Something was going on, and it scared me that I didn't know what it was. He was just standing there, with an emotionless expression on his face. There was no smirk, no amusement twinkling in his eyes, nothing. He was hollow, and it was extremely intimidating.

"Arigato." I said nicely. I turned, taking a few steps down the hallway that led out of the fifth squad.

_**Cho, watch-**_

I felt Aizen's fingers close around my upper arm and the next thing I knew, I was pinned against the wall. I gasped in surprise, taking in a deep breath, and meeting Aizen's eyes. I knew he'd been up to something, and now I knew what it was. But now that he had me up against the wall, what was he planning on doing? "What're you doing Aizen?" I asked coldly. Then there was the smirk and the amused look, whatever was going on in his head wasn't a good thing for me.

"_Cho-chan_." he teased, I glared at him coldly.

"Nani?" I asked angrily. He tilted his head, studying me, and said

"Do you love him?" he asked out of the blue. What the hell did this have to do with anything? Why was it any of his business? "Answer wisely Cho-chan, something just might happen to him." My eyes widened in fear, what was he playing at?

"What do you mean?" I asked quietly, I cringed feeling him squeeze my arms tighter.

"You haven't answered yet, Cho-chan." he said, leering at me. I lowered my eyes and bit down on my lower lip.

"Hai." I mumbled

"What was that?" he teased, that jerk. What did he want from me damn it?

"Hai." I almost yelled, I glared up at him. His smirk widened, and he said

"That's sweet Cho-chan, that you care so much about the taicho."

"What do you want from me?" I asked, trying to hide how scared I was. "Why can't you just leave me alone?"

"Now Cho-chan I told you before, you interest me." Aizen said with a teasing tone "I enjoy watching you." Now that _really_ creeped me out, he enjoyed watching me? What the fuck? He was such a lunatic. "You never do as I expect."

"That's no reason to try to ruin my life." I exclaimed, unable to stop myself. He smirked, running one of his fingers down my cheek. I flinched at his touch, jerking my head to the side. I hated the fact that he was touching me, couldn't he just leave me alone?

"So you do love him then?" he asked, I nodded sullenly. "You'll do whatever I say from now on, understand Cho-chan?" I jerked my head around, looking back in his eyes.

"Nande-"

"If you want him safe that is." he said smirking, I lowered my head. What else could I do, there was no other way to keep Shinji safe. I could tell Aizen was powerful, much more powerful than a normal fukutaicho. He had a taicho's strength, possibly more. And a man this strong, always had a couple of supporters, followers, whatever you wanted to call them. They would all of course be somewhere near his strength, but not as powerful so Aizen could still control them. I couldn't say no, no matter how much I wanted to. I really did love Shinji, I really was _in _love with him. I wanted to keep him safe, and I didn't want Aizen to hurt him. I wouldn't be able to survive without Shinji, and I knew it.

I glanced up through my bangs at Aizen's face and nodded sadly. I watched his smirk widen, and he placed his hand ontop of my head. He stroked my hair for a moment, rubbing it in my face that I was under his control now.

"Go on, it'll be a while before I need you so try to enjoy yourself." he said with that same teasing tone. I nodded, feeling him release his grip on my arm, and trudged down the hallway. I'd lost, I'd literally just lost his little game. Now…there was no way out.

**Author's Note: NOOOO! Aizen's such a bastard. Hate him, hate him, hate him! Why couldn't there have never been an Aizen, why???? FIVE REVIEWS=UPDATE!**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_"Cho-chan…is somethin' wrong?" I looked over at Shinji, turning my blank expression into a smile._

_"No…nande?" I asked, twirling a strand of hair around my finger. He tilted his head to the side, looking straight into my eyes._

_"Ya haven't really seemed yerself lately Cho-chan." he replied, cupping my cheek with his hand. I smiled, leaning into the warmth of his hand, and closed my eyes in happiness._

_I loved Shinji so much…I really did, but this whole Aizen thing had interrupted and almost destroyed everything good about my life. Ever since he'd cornered me that day in the hallway, nothing had really been the same with me. I'd been alot more quiet, keeping to myself way more than I normally_ _did._


	24. Chapter Twenty Four: Spoken Feelings

"Cho-chan…is somethin' wrong?" I looked over at Shinji, turning my blank expression into a smile.

"No…nande?" I asked, twirling a strand of hair around my finger. He tilted his head to the side, looking straight into my eyes.

"Ya haven't really seemed yerself lately Cho-chan." he replied, cupping my cheek with his hand. I smiled, leaning into the warmth of his hand, and closed my eyes in happiness.

I loved Shinji so much…I really did, but this whole Aizen thing had interrupted and almost destroyed everything good about my life. Ever since he'd cornered me that day in the hallway, nothing had really been the same with me. I'd been alot more quiet, keeping to myself way more than I normally did. I was doing a whole bunch of thinking, trying to figure out if there was any way out of doing whatever he said, but I had yet to find one. Kurisutaru couldn't even think of anything I could do, she'd even withdrawn herself from me at times…not speaking as much.

Shinji had automatically noticed my acting differently, and I could tell he was worried about me. I didn't know what I could do though, if Aizen said he was going to hurt Shinji than he would. My only way to protect him was to cooperate and do whatever he said. He had said he wouldn't need my services for a while and to enjoy the little freedom I had left, but I wasn't able to do that. My thoughts were too focused on Aizen, trying to figure out what he was planning. I didn't have any ideas though, and neither did Kurisutaru. This wasn't good, this wasn't good in the least.

"I'm fine." I said softly, smiling at him. "Nothing's wrong with me." He nodded, but I had a feeling he didn't believe it. I scooted closer to him in the bed, placing my head on his chest. He ran his fingers through my hair, smiling a genuine smile at me. I felt my cheeks go warm and lightly pressed my lips against his cheek. He chuckled, keeping his arm wrapped securely around my waist.

"Cho-chan?" I looked at him curiously, mentally hoping that he wasn't going to ask me what was wrong again. I hated having to lie to Shinji, but I didn't want to worry him. Lying seemed like it was the only way for me to not worry him. "There's something…I've been wantin' ta tell ya fer a while now." I nodded, smiling at him.

"Nani Shinji-kun?" I asked sweetly. He stared down into my eyes, rubbing my cheek with his thumb. He held my gaze for what seemed like a good number of hours, before his eyes flicked away from mine. "Shinji?" I questioned, hoping he was alright. "What is it?"

"Cho-chan…I…" He stopped, he seemed nervous…it was like the day of the fireworks festival all over again.

"Shinji…talk to me…what's on your mind?" I asked, sounding quiet. He pressed his lips against my forehead, mumbling something. "Nani?"

"Cho-chan…I love you." he said, staring down into my eyes.

I felt my heart soaring, everything concerning Aizen vanished from my thoughts, none of it mattered anymore. Shinji had just told me he loved me, after all these months he'd finally said it to me. And I knew that he was serious about it. How could someone look at someone else the way Shinji looked at me, and not be in love? Hina and Okito were the same way, just by the way that they looked at each other…I could tell they were in love. I didn't care about what Aizen was planning. He said he wouldn't need me for a while, fine by me. Shinji was the only thing that mattered to me, and I'd do anything for him. Anything to keep him safe. I loved Shinji, and I was ready to let him know it.

"I love you too Shinji." I said softly. He smiled, gently pressing his lips against mine. I smiled into the kiss, placing my arms around his neck, and held him close to me. I never wanted this moment to stop, never. I broke away from Shinji and groaned hearing a knock at my door. I pulled myself off the bed and went to answer the door. Shinji didn't seem all that pleased about the interruption, and neither was I. "Nani?" I asked angrily, opening the door. I looked at the man standing there, and he handed me an envelope.

"It's from Miyo-sama, Choyo-sama." he said respectfully. I felt a smile come to my lips and ran to my desk.

"Please come in. I'll just be a second to reply." I heard the door slide shut and ripped open the envelope. Shinji placed his hands on my shoulders, kissing the top of my head. "Gomen Shinji-kun, demo-"

"It's fine love, I know ya haven't heard from yer Nee-san in a while." he said, kissing my head again. "I can wait." I smiled thankfully and unfolded the letter.

_Cho-chan,_

_Oh my god! You'll never believe it Imouto, never. I want to the doctor today about the baby and guess what! It's twins, literally twins. The doctor said they're both boys, and I'm so excited. I thought I'd let you be the first person know about this amazing news. I haven't even told Dai yet so you should feel privileged that you get to know first. I'm still trying to think names over, I'm thinking A would be a nice start. But yeah, send me something back. Tell Shinji I said hello won't ya?_

_Love your Nee-san,_

_Miyo_

I gasped, looking back at Shinji laying on the bed.

"Nani?" he asked curiously

"Miyo's having twin boys." I exclaimed, he grinned.

"That's great Cho-chan, tell yer sis I said congrats." Shinji said, sounding happy that my mood had gone away from gloomy. I nodded, turning back to my desk, and grabbing a pen.

"She said hi as well." I said, uncapping the pen.

"Tell her I said hi back." Shinji asked of me. I nodded and wrote.

_Miyo,_

_That's amazing news, congratulations. Shinji offers his as well, and said hi back. I'm so excited that I'm going to have two nephews rather than just one, and arigato for telling me first. It feels good being the first person to know something. You're an awesome sis. A huh? That's a thought, I don't think anyone in the family has their name starting with A. Hmm, well good luck picking out names. Oh, and you'll never guess what happened before I got this letter. Shinji told me he loved me, no joke. LOVED me, I'm so happy right now, I'm almost lost for words. I can honestly say I know what you're feeling, love is really an amazing feeling. Write me back soon._

_Love from,_

_Cho_

I quickly folded the letter, placing it in an envelope, and handed it over to the messenger.

"Arigato, please take this to Miyo-chan as quickly as possible." I asked of him. He nodded, bowing.

"Of course Choyo-sama." he said, darting out of the room. I sighed annoyed, shaking my head.

"It's Cho." I mumbled, sliding the door shut. Shinji chuckled from the bed, and I looked over my shoulder at him curiously. "Nani?" He chuckled again, motioning me closer. I walked to the bed, dropping down beside him.

"Yer so snippety all the time." he teased, rubbing his nose against mine. "It's cute." I giggled, feeling my cheeks getting warm.

"Arigato Shinji-kun." I said sweetly. He smiled, pressing his lips against mine. I felt my eyes slip shut in bliss, he was just too perfect. I never did think that someone would make me feel the way he did. He pulled out of the kiss, I opened my eyes finding his. He tilted his to the side, studying me.

"Yer…so beautiful Cho-chan." he said softly, I smiled still blushing.

"Arigato." I whispered. He smiled, gently stroking my cheek. I leaned into his touch, thinking about how I never wanted to be without him. I loved him, I really did love him. "Shinji?" He stared into my eyes, still smiling at me. "I love you." His eyes softened, and he pressed his lips to my forehead.

"Yer doin' it again." he whispered, I looked up at him confused. What was he talking about?

"Nani?" He smiled at how confused my tone of voice was.

"Soundin' all innocent." he replied, running his fingers through my hair. "Making me want ta protect ya from everything." I giggled, kissing his cheek.

"There's no need to protect me." I said softly "Nothing bad's going to happen Shinji-kun." He stared into my eyes for a moment before nodding, why was he always so determined to protect me?

_**He just admitted it to ya Cho, he loves you that's why!**_

_I know that he-_

_**Then why do ya hafta keep questioning it? Enjoy the fact that he loves ya so much.**_

_I do-_

_**Now shut up and kiss him. He obviously wants you to.**_

_Ok ok-_

_**And stop talking to me already, kiss him.**_

_I was just going-_

_**And make sure it's passionate and sexy.**_

_When did you-_

_**Enough with the excuses, go on!**_

I almost groaned at how frustrating she was, I hadn't even got to finish most of my sentences…in fact. I hadn't gotten to finish _any_ of them. She was such a…whatever you wanted to call her. I looked at Shinji, smiling slightly, before I pressed my lips against his. He slipped his arm around my waist, holding me close to him. It seemed like a subtle form of protection, like a subconscious type. I didn't think he caught on that he did that alot. He held me close to him all the time when he was trying to protect me, it was so sweet that he cared so much about me. I cared about him more than I thought was humanly possible, it was like…an unreal kind of love. Shinji kissed me gently, holding me all the while. Tonight seemed more like an emotional night than a 'let's make out' type of night. Which wasn't a bad thing, I loved how gentle he was with me. It was a sign of true love, and caring, and just all those other lovey dovey things.

"Cho-chan, I love you." Shinji said, leaning his forehead against mine. I smiled, running my fingers through his blonde hair. "You don't understand, what I'd do to keep you safe. Anything for you, you're my perfect angel."

_**That definitely sounds like something I heard in a play.**_

_Shut it bitch, he means it all!_

_**Demo…it's still fun making fun of him.**_

_Gah! You're so frustrating!_

_**Ha ha, gomen.**_

_Are not._

_**So?**_

"I do understand Shinji, because I feel the exact same way about you. You're…the only thing I ever think about. Do you know how angry Aikawa-taicho gets at me for daydreaming about you all the time?" I asked, smiling. He chuckled, lightly kissing my lips again.

"I've heard him complain 'bout it a time or two." he teased, I giggled, smiling shyly.

"I love you Shinji." I smiled again, feeling his lips against my forehead.

"I love you too." I closed my eyes, keeping my head on his chest. I never would understand how love managed to go beyond limitations and understanding, but what did it really matter? Happiness was happiness, and the happiness I got from being with Shinji was something I wouldn't trade the world for.

**Author's Note: Yay! Shinji finally told Cho he loved her, I loved writing that part. I did tons of awwwing and smiling. It's just so cute, so adorable! But the next chapter is something you all will like, no joke. Most of you anyway. I'll be posting a warning at the beginning of the next chapter so make sure you all READ IT!!! FIVE REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER!**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_I slid the door open and smiled at Love._

_"Aikawa-taicho." I said with a bow. He smiled slightly, going back to his manga. I shook my head, shutting the door, and walked across the room to his desk. I put my hand over the pages, he looked up looking annoyed._

_"Cho, you better…" He stopped when I held up the report and groaned. "Do I hafta?"_

_"Hai." I said with an evil grin_

_"Demo, the day's almost over." he complained. I giggled, grabbing the manga from him. "No! Give it back!"_

_"Do it." I said, holding out the report..._


	25. Chapter Twenty Five: I Want This

**WARNING: Alright, this is a chapter I know a ton of people have been waiting for so I need to give a warning to the young ones. This chapter contains adult situations, to make it short. Sexual situations. If you are young, easily embarrassed, or just think it's disgusting, then don't read the chapter. Nothing of real importance happens so you won't be missing much. You can continue with reading the next chapter, and not be lost. The rating, as you all have noticed, has been upped to M for this chapter. This is my very first time writing one of these types of things so try to be nice, I did my very best. Enjoy =]**

I nodded to myself, looking over the report, and smiled at the new ninth seat of my squad.

"Arigato." I said sweetly, closing the folder. "It'll be delivered to the taicho immediately." She nodded, looking nervous that I was such a higher seat than her, and bowed.

_**Wow, you must be scary.**_

_I would hope not, I don't want all the little people to be terrified of me._

_**Hehe, power in terror. I like it.**_

_Well I don't._

"Arigato Nagataka-fukutaicho." I nodded, smiling at her. She brought herself out of her bow and head down the hallway. I turned, continuing my journey to the office I shared with Love.

Everything seemed to be getting so much better now, my spirits had been soaring since Shinji had told me he loved me. Nothing had brought me down, and I didn't think anything could. I was too wrapped up in my feelings and everything to even bother worrying about anything. I was doing _way _to much daydreaming in the office though. Love was getting rather annoyed with me and loading me down with paperwork. It wasn't helping him any though, he was just winding up doing it himself since I was getting too distracted by my own thoughts. Whoopsy.

I slid the door open and smiled at Love.

"Aikawa-taicho." I said with a bow. He smiled slightly, going back to his manga. I shook my head, shutting the door, and walked across the room to his desk. I put my hand over the pages, he looked up looking annoyed.

"Cho, you better…" He stopped when I held up the report and groaned. "Do I hafta?"

"Hai." I said with an evil grin

"Demo, the day's almost over." he complained. I giggled, grabbing the manga from him. "No! Give it back!"

"Do it." I said, holding out the report. He gave a reluctant nod, grabbing the folder. I smirked, turning away from his desk, and walked over to mine. I grabbed the other reports from our squad members that he had yet to look over, walking back to his desk. I dropped them on his desk, and he gave me a horrified look.

"Nani Cho!" he exclaimed, I grinned.

"You'll get your manga back tomorrow taicho." I teased, sounding incredibly sweet.

"Demo-" I shook my head, smiling nicely.

"One more word, and it goes to Rose." I warned, he shut his mouth. I sighed in bliss, happy that I had so much leverage over my taicho, and walked across the room to the door. "I'll see you tomorrow Aikawa-taicho."

"Bye Cho." he said, not sounding very pleased with me. I giggled, sliding the door open, and exiting the office. I shut the door, walking down the hallway. I glanced at the manga, rolling my eyes. He was so obsessed with reading this stuff, and it was always my leverage for getting him to do what I wanted. He needed to do more of his duties as a taicho, I had a feeling that I did most of his job for him. I giggled again, walking towards my room.

_**So, you planning on visiting Shinji?**_

_Most likely, he hasn't really seemed all that happy lately._

_**How come?**_

_No clue, I'm planning on talking to him about it._

_**Good idea. Knowing what's going on in your significant other's life is important.**_

_I know that._

I sighed, sliding the door to my room open, and tilted my head to the side seeing Shinji laying on my bed. When had he got here? I entered the room and he looked in my direction, smiling at me. I slid the door shut behind me and tossed the manga on my desk. Shinji raised an eyebrow.

"Love's manga?" he asked, I nodded in agreement.

"He needs to get to working on his paperwork." I said, shrugging a bit. "He needs motivation." Shinji rolled his eyes in amusement. I took my fukutaicho badge off my arm, putting it besides Love's manga. I kicked my shoes off my feet, staring at Shinji's haori laying across the floor before I walked over to my bed, laying down next to Shinji. He kissed my cheek, putting his arm around me. I smiled at him and said "How are you Shinji-kun?" He shrugged, not really looking like the question interested him.

"Fine I guess." I wrinkled my nose, wondering what was bothering him.

"What's wrong?" I asked curiously

"Nothing." I shook my head, wondering why he was lying to me. "Really." he pressed.

"I don't believe you." I said "You haven't seemed ok lately." He sighed, turning on his back.

"Yer too perceptive." he complained, I giggled.

"Nope, you're just a bad liar towards me." I disagreed "It's your own fault." He glared playfully at me, and I laughed to myself. "Aw, poor Shinji-kun." He pounced, pinning my hands against the mattress, straddling my waist. I stared up into his eyes, feeling extremely nervous. Just the way he was staring at me…it was such a longing and wanting look. What was he thinking? "Shinji?"

"It's nothing, ok?" he said, sounding serious. "I'm just…dealin with some things right now." I nodded, wondering why he didn't want to tell me.

"How come you won't tell me what?" I asked, licking my dry lips. He sighed, not seeming all that happy about my questions.

"Someone's up ta somethin. I'm tryin' ta figure it out, and it's frustratin me a bit." he said, trying to be as vague as possible. I nodded, not wanting to push him to tell me anything else if he didn't want to.

"Ok…I miss you though. I miss the way you are…don't let it affect you anymore if you're going to continue with this." I said softly. He nodded saying

"Gomen Cho-chan, I love you." I smiled, feeling his lips against mine.

"I love you too." I managed to get out before pressing my lips back against his. I felt my eyes slip shut, completely giving myself up to the kiss. It was so gentle, so careful. He was always so careful when he was with me, it was like he was afraid he'd hurt me. Even our making out was slightly careful, except when he lost some of his self-control. Which wasn't a bad thing at all, I enjoyed the passion.

He broke off the kiss and kissed the side of my face. I giggled at all the kisses he was planting down the side of my face and smiled, feeling his fingers running through my hair. He finally brought his lips back to mine, kissing me so gently. I was getting slightly tired of it too, I wanted the passion he'd given me before. I slipped my trapped hand out of his grip and moved my hand to the back of his neck, parting his lips with my tongue. I felt his grip on my cheek tighten slightly, I never usually was the one to take control of our kissing. I traced all the corners and crevices of his mouth before his tongue finally rubbed back against mine. Our tongues were dancing, battling for dominance. I moaned and could feel him smirking against my lips. The next thing I knew, he'd broken off the kiss. What was he doing? That was the best kiss we'd ever shared.

I opened my eyes to find him smirking at me, and damn was it sexy. I felt my cheeks heat up at the thought, a blush covering my entire face. This wasn't good, this wasn't good at all. How'd he get me embarrassed so easily all the time? What was he thinking? What was he planning? He only got _that _look when he was planning something…

"Shinji?" I questioned, his smirk widened. He kissed me again, sliding his tongue into my mouth. I placed my arms around his neck, keeping his lips connected with mine. His tongue was tracing my mouth, rememorizing it. A quiet moan of pleasure escaped my lips, then he stopped. Was he enjoying teasing me to no end? I opened my eyes, wishing he would stop with the…stopping of kissing. He chuckled, pinning both my hands back against the mattress. Now I was really nervous and confused, what was he doing…and thinking? "Shinji?" I whispered

"Relax." he purred, kissing the side of my face.

"Demo…what're you-" I moaned softly feeling him kissing my neck and closed my eyes, enjoying the feeling of his lips on my skin. All the kisses were driving me crazy, he was just _too _good. I bit down on my lower lip, moaning again when he started biting and sucking on my neck. It was just like that day in his office all over again, he hadn't kissed my neck since then and it felt so amazing. I wasn't really able to control myself…all over again. I was feeling so lightheaded, pleasure pooling over me, I hoped he wouldn't stop any time soon. Then he did.

"Cho?" I opened my eyes, immediately locking them with Shinji's. "Do you trust me?" he asked, tilting his head a bit. He wasn't using slang…this was something serious for sure.

"More than anything." I whispered, still staring into his eyes.

"Do you want me to stop?" he asked, sounding serious. I quickly shook my head, there was no way I wanted him to stop.

"Please…keep going." I pleaded. His lips stretched into a grin, and he pressed his lips against mine again. I moaned into his mouth, feeling his tongue rubbing against mine, and he moved my hands to where they were positioned above my head. Using one hand to hold both of my wrists he used the other to trace every inch, every curve of my body. I was feeling so lightheaded, all the pleasure was getting to me. The way he was touching me, it all felt so amazing. Like…only _he _was meant to touch me this way. After what seemed like only a few seconds we broke apart for air, I was _really _feeling lightheaded now. He stared down into my eyes, it looked like he was concerned. Was he worried he was pushing me into this?

"Cho…" I managed to free one of my hands and put a finger to his lips.

"Shinji…please don't ruin this moment for me. I've wanted this to happen for so long, please." I said softly. He nodded, still looking slightly unsure. I knew he cared about me alot, and that's why he was trying so hard not to push me into doing this. I wanted this though, and he needed to know that.

I felt a blush creep onto my face and slipped my other wrist out of his grip. I scooted back slightly, sitting up and grabbed the hem of my shirt. I pulled my shirt over my head, blushing darker as I did so. I looked up at his face, staring into his eyes. He smiled slightly, lightly running his fingers through my hair, and roughly pressed his lips against mine. I moaned quietly, kissing him back, our tongues battling for dominance. I moved my hands down his clothed chest, finally coming across the white obi sash. With trembling fingers I worked on untying the sash and calming myself down, while he was busy kissing and biting his way down my neck.

I finally managed to untie the sash and threw it off to the side. Shinji moved away from my skin for a good…four seconds, to toss his kimono top in the floor. He went back to my lips, kissing me oh so passionately while his hands worked their way over my body. He was touching everything, caressing everything, it was all so new to me. But it felt right, so right. I moved my hands down his chest, lightly brushing my fingertips against his skin. I guessed it felt good to him, he moaned so that was a plus for me. He broke away from my lips, kissing down my neck to my collarbone. I moaned quietly and hissed feeling him bite down. It stung, but I didn't really notice all that much. I was too focused on the feeling of my pants sliding down my legs. I licked my lips watching Shinji toss my pants in the floor and wrapped my arm around his neck, bringing his lips back down on mine. He groaned, kissing me roughly, and pulled back from my lips. He moved to kissing my neck again, before he nibbled on my ear, lightly running his fingers up my inner thighs.

"Sh-Shinji." I moaned loudly and he chuckled, amused that he could get _that _kind of reaction out of me. He moved away from my neck, down to my stomach. I wiggled a bit, feeling his lips pressing against my stomach, up my abs. I moaned again, gripping the sheets under me. "Please." I begged. He chuckled again, capturing my lips with his. I groaned in pleasure, feeling his hands tracing my body again, and pulled him closer never wanting this to stop. I didn't understand how he was making me feel this way, I wasn't even all the way naked yet! I felt him break the kiss and say

"Cho." I opened my eyes, staring at him slightly dazed. Why was he still playing around like this? He had no idea what he was doing to me by stopping…when had he taken off his pants? "I love you." I felt my lips curve into a smile hearing him say that to me.

"I love you too Shinji." I said softly. He looked at me with the most concerned look, and I tilted my head slightly.

"I don't want to have to hurt you." He stared straight into my eyes and finally kissed my forehead. "I-"

"Shinji, please." I whispered. He let out a sigh and moved back to kissing my neck. "I love you so much."

"I love you too Cho, that's why I don't wanna hurt you." he said quietly. I nodded, understanding why he was acting this way towards me. He was hesitant because he _knew _that I'd never had sex before. He _knew _that it would hurt me, and he _thought_ of me as fragile. But he cared enough about me to be careful, and that's why I loved him so much. Because he didn't just jump at the chance to have sex with me, he was being careful since this was my first time. He wanted it to be special for me…the next time he'd definitely jump at it though.

"It'll be amazing when the pain's gone." he mumbled into my neck. I nodded, moaning again when he bit down on my neck. He kissed below my jaw line and wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me close to him. He easily unhooked my bra and tossed it to the side. Cold air hit my chest, but I really didn't notice since he immediately starting kissing my breasts. In a way, it was kind of soothing. Well…for a second at least. I groaned, arching my back when he bit down on one of my nipples. This was such an amazing feeling, I didn't understand how such a simple action could do something like _that_ to me. Shinji moved up, kissing my neck again, gently squeezing and caressing my breasts. I moaned softly, loving the feeling and pleasure he was giving me.

I felt his fingers slide down from my breasts, down my stomach to my panties. I bit my lip, trying to calm myself down. I didn't need to be nervous, Shinji would never hurt me on purpose. He loved me. Without looking he managed to slip my panties off, and he moved to kiss my lips. I gently pressed my lips back against his, and he mumbled

"Try not to scream." I nodded, moving my lips against his. I gasped in pain feeling a finger enter me and clenched my teeth. Shinji moved away from my lips, staring into my eyes with a concerned look. "Cho-"

"I'm fine." I gasped, squeezing my eyes shut. "Don't stop." I opened my eyes, staring into his, and he finally nodded. I bit down on my lower lip as he moved that one finger in and out of me, until I got used to the feeling. Then, a second finger. I whimpered, closing my eyes again.

"Cho-"

"I'm ok." I choked, opening my eyes. He lightly kissed my lips, saying

"I love you." I nodded, smiling through the stinging pain.

"I love you too." I roughly pressed my lips against his, trying to occupy my thoughts with something other than his fingers moving inside me. I rubbed my tongue across the roof of his mouth, and he moaned loudly pulling his fingers out of me. I whimpered in protest, I'd actually gotten to liking the feel of it. Next thing I knew, he was kissing me and… "FUCK!"

**Author's Note: Well, there we go. I didn't really think I'd do a good job about writing the ACTUAL sex part, so I decided I'd work my way up by starting small...if you can even count all that as small. But whatever, reviews would be rather nice. I'm not going to demand them for this chapter, but I'd really like some imput on my first sexual kind of writing. Let me know if I did a decent job, won't ya? Thanks for reading.**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_I could feel myself coming back to the conscious world, but I wanted to go back to sleep. I was so comfortable, the sheets were so warm and stuff. I smiled to myself, cuddling close to…I felt an arm around my waist. My eyes fluttered open, meeting a pair of grey ones. I smiled slightly, it was nice waking up in Shinji's arms. I slid closer to him, putting my head on his chest…his bare chest. Wait a second, what was going on here?_

_That's when I remembered what had happened…sex. Pure, naked, sex. No wonder I felt naked, it was because I was. I felt my cheeks go extremely hot and closed my eyes in embarrassment. Shinji chuckled, moving his fingers through my white hair. I held the sheets tightly around my body, still refusing to open my eyes. _

_"Cho-chan." I opened my eyes, glancing up at Shinji through my bangs. He tilted his head, running a finger down my cheek with a grin on his face. "Yer blushing." he stated. I blushed darker and squeezed my eyes shut..._


	26. Chapter Twenty Six: We Need To Talk

I could feel myself coming back to the conscious world, but I wanted to go back to sleep. I was so comfortable, the sheets were so warm and stuff. I smiled to myself, cuddling close to…I felt an arm around my waist. Wait, did Shinji stay the night or something? My eyes fluttered open, meeting a pair of grey ones. I smiled slightly, it was nice waking up in Shinji's arms. I always felt so safe when he was holding me. I slid closer to him, putting my head on his chest…his bare chest. Wait a second, what was going on here?

That's when I remembered what had happened…sex. Pure, naked, sex. No wonder I felt naked, it was because I _was_. I felt my cheeks go extremely hot and closed my eyes in embarrassment. Shinji chuckled, moving his fingers through my white hair. I held the sheets tightly around my body, still refusing to open my eyes. I was so embarrassed, to think _that_ happened…GAH!

"Cho-chan." I opened my eyes, glancing up at Shinji through my bangs. He tilted his head, running a finger down my cheek with a grin on his face. "Yer blushing." he stated. I blushed darker and squeezed my eyes shut. He chuckled again, pressing his lips against my forehead. "What's wrong Cho-chan? Ya seem so embarrassed." I bit down on my lower lip in total and utter embarrassment, I couldn't believe this had happened. Not that it was a bad thing because it wasn't. I loved Shinji, I knew he loved me, and now we were so much closer. On both an emotional level and physical level…it was the closest bond someone could have with another person. "C'mon Cho-chan, talk ta me." I continued blushing but forced my eyes open, I had no _clue_ what I was going to say to him.

"What…happened?" Of course I asked something that was completely and totally obvious, I bet I sounded like an idiot right about now.

_**SEX, DUH!**_

_Shut it, leave me alone for now._

_**Gah, fine. I won't come back till he leaves.**_

_Arigato._

Shinji smiled softly, pressing his lips to my forehead; I felt my blush spreading even further across my cheeks.

"I would think it was obvious Cho-chan." Shinji said, sounding a little teasing. I lowered my eyes, smiling slightly. "Ya don't regret it, do ya?" I automatically shook my head, looking up into his eyes.

"No." I whispered, touching my fingers to his face. "I wanted it…and it was…amazing." He chuckled, kissing my cheek.

"I love you Cho." I felt my smile widen and stared up into his eyes.

"I love you too Shinji." I said softly. He grinned, pressing his lips against mine. I smiled into the gentle kiss, placing my arm around his neck. I just wanted him to hold me, to feel the closeness…emotional and physical. After a few seconds, he broke the gentle kiss, staring me in the eyes.

"I wish I could stay longer…demo…" He stopped, not looking all that happy about having to leave me.

"Stay…please." I asked of him. He sighed, lowering his eyes. I knew he couldn't stay here since he had a meeting with all the other taichos, but I'd still asked him to. I knew I shouldn't have, he shouldn't have to chose between me and his duties. It hadn't been right of me to ask, but I was in a very possessive mood right now. I wanted him to stay with me right now, and I didn't really care if I made him choose between his duties and me. He'd do whatever he wanted to do, and nothing I said would stop him…so asking him to stay wasn't that big of a deal I guessed. Shinji flicked his eyes back to mine and nodded in agreement.

"Alright, I'll stay a lil longer." I felt a smile come to my lips and pressed my lips against his. He kissed me back, running his fingers through my hair. I pouted when he pulled out of the kiss and wrinkled my nose annoyed. "Nani Cho-chan?" he asked smirking

"You stopped." I complained, his smirk widened.

"Gomen doll, can't kiss ya too much." he said, my annoyed look changed to confused.

"Nande?" I asked confused, he chuckled at how innocent I was.

"If I kiss ya too much I might hafta do more than just that." he explained, still smirking. I felt a blush come onto my face and scooted slightly away from him. He turned on his side, looking at me. "Nani Cho-chan?" he asked, I bit down on my lower lip thinking.

"Ano…" I stopped, not really knowing what to say to him. He nodded, waiting for me to think of how to say it. I chewed on my lower lip for a minute or two and finally said "How long can you stay with me?" He looked over his shoulder at my clock.

"About another half an hour." he replied, turning back to me. I nodded, that wasn't really all that much time…but I wanted to turn him on as much as possible before he had to leave. He'd be pissed about it, but he'd be ready to return the favor when the meeting was over. It'd motivate him to get back to me as soon as possible, and I'd definitely be ready for _that_. "Nande?" he asked, confused as to why I needed to know the time. I giggled, saying

"No reason, just curious." He gave me a look that said he wasn't buying my story, and I tilted my head to the side. "Nani?"

"Yer up ta somethin." he stated, his eyes still penetrating mine. I moved my hair away from my face and looked up at him through my lashes. He gave me a perplexed look, still not having any idea what I was thinking.

"Nani? Do I seem like a sneak or something?" I asked, sounding innocent. He rolled his eyes, saying

"Right now ya do." I smirked, scooting back to him.

"Really?" I asked, sounding seductive "Guess that's a good thing for you then huh?" He looked bewildered at the mere _idea_ of me sounding that seductive and said

"Cho-chan, what're ya think-"

He never did get to finish. I pulled his face down to mine, our lips locking. Our lips moved and molded against each other's, another gentle kiss. It wasn't going to stay that way though, I wouldn't let it. When he went to pull out of the kiss, I placed my arm around his neck and lightly bit down on his lower lip. He moaned quietly, running his hand down to my lower back. I almost giggled at how little I had to do to keep him kissing me but forced myself not to. His tongue slipped into my mouth, quickly finding mine. This kiss was so heated and passionate, it was more than just lust though…it was actual love. I moaned softly, pulling out of the kiss, and bit down on his neck. This was something he wasn't really used to, but hey. Surprises were always a good thing…most of the time anyway. He moaned, tangling his fingers in my hair as I continued kissing and lightly biting down on his neck. He was enjoying it, he was _definitely _enjoying it.

"Cho, how the hell-" He moaned again, feeling my tongue run up his neck. "Innocent seductress." he mumbled, moaning again. I had to giggle at that one, innocent and seductive was quite the combination.

"Arigato." I whispered sweetly. I eeped when he turned over, now it looked like I was at _his _mercy…not good at all. I felt my breath hitch in my throat, moaning feeling his lips against my neck. "Shinji." He chuckled, kissing down my neck. And I was supposed to be the one turning _him _on. I groaned loudly feeling him nibbling and biting, arching my back. That's when he climbed off me. I sat up, holding the covers around myself and glared at his back since he wasn't facing me. "Nani?" I asked angrily "Where do you-"

"I toldja I couldn't stay long." he said, quickly dressing. I pouted and crawled over him, still holding the sheets around my body. I stopped, moving his hair aside, and kissed his pulse point. I felt his body stiffen against mine, and I grinned in victory. I lightly bit down, sucking on the spot afterwards. He groaned quietly, leaning his head back in pleasure. I bit down harder than I had planned, and he grabbed onto my waist, pulling me on his lap. I gasped feeling him roughly press his lips against mine, tightening my grip on the sheets around my body. I moaned when his tongue rubbed against mine, latching onto his hair. He broke away from my lips, kissing down my neck again. I moaned softly, moving my hands over his clothed body. He grunted in response to my traveling hands, pulling back from my neck, and taking both my hands. I opened my eyes, looking at him slightly dazed. "Damn it Cho, now look what ya've done. Do ya know how long I'm gonna be like this?" I chuckled, nodding.

"All through the meeting, maybe it'll motivate you to get back to me ASAP." I teased, giggling. His narrowed his eyes, angry with me for turning him on so much, and released his grip on my hands. He wiped at his neck, rolling his eyes at the blood.

"Ya even made me bleed." he complained. I giggled again, leaning forward and licking the blood off his neck. He sighed in pleasure, and I lightly kissed my way down his neck. "No." He took a hold of my shoulders, pulling me away from his neck. "Yer definitely gettin' it later." he warned, sitting me on the bed. I smiled sweetly, saying

"I look forward to it." He rolled his eyes, kissing my forehead, and walked out of the room muttering

"Temptress." I giggled again, falling back onto the bed. He was pissed, but oh well. He deserved it…not really, but I just wanted to tease him like that. It was very fun after all, and now he had something to look forward to later.

_**Oh yeah.**_

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX LATER XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

I stared at my reflection, running my hairbrush through my snow white hair. I turned, looking at my hair from all possible angles, and nodded seeing it looked perfect. I set down my hairbrush, looking back up into the mirror. I stared at my reflection, studying my face. I needed to make sure I looked perfect. Shinji would be getting back from his meeting soon, and I needed to be the perfect Temptress. I smirked to myself, giggling at how…un-innocent I felt. I felt very…sexy. It was a weird feeling, but at the same time I kind of liked it. It was good being able to feel like you were sexually attractive, and I felt _extremely _sexually attractive right now.

I moved a few strands of my hair around, before I exited the bathroom in just my red lacy strapless bra and matching red panties. They matched with my eyes anyway. I looked through my dresser for a sexy nightgown, trying to find something before Shinji burst into the room in anger that I'd turned him on so much before his meeting. I smiled coming across a very sexy black nightgown and slipped it over my head. It fell down my body, stopping a few inches above mid-thigh level. The dress cut down in the front, showing off some of my cleavage. I didn't ever think I'd take such care in getting ready to see a man…in my nightgown of all things. I rolled my eyes at myself, brushing my fingertips across the silk and plopped down on the bed. I laid back, my head on the pillows, and stared at the ceiling.

_**You look very sexy right now.**_

_Nande arigato gosaimasu. _

_**Shinji'll like this, fer sure.**_

_He better! I took a long while to get ready for him._

_**Ah, apparently you like sex.**_

_Who wouldn't? Demo…it's not just about the sex. I love Shinji._

_**Aw!!! So cute, hmmm…**_

_Nani? Is something wrong Kurisutaru?_

_**Nah, I'm gonna hafta go though.**_

_Nande?_

_**Eh, you'll be seein in about…3,2,1.**_

I heard the door slide open and looked over to find Shinji standing in the doorway. I sat up, smiling at him. He entered the room, sliding the door shut behind him, and shunpoed over to me. I looked up at him, surprised at the fact that he'd used shunpo in my room. He must've been _really _angry about this morning. I licked my lips absentmindedly, and he sat beside me taking my hand in his. I tilted my head to the side confused, what was going on in his head?

"Shinji-kun…is something wrong?" I asked quietly. He moved his eyes from the bed sheets, meeting mine.

"Cho…there's something I need to talk to you about." he replied. I nodded, recognizing there was no slang in his words. Whatever he had to say to me, it was something really serious and important. I was hoping it wasn't about this morning, hopefully he wasn't angry over that.

"What is it?" I said softly "You're not mad at me are you?" He smiled genuinely, shaking his head.

"Quite the opposite Cho-chan." he said, kissing my forehead. I giggled, loving the feel of his lips against my skin, and he leaned his forehead against mine still staring into my eyes.

"What's going on then?" I asked sweetly. He took in a breath, moving his face away from mine.

"Cho…you know I care about you more than anything." he said, I nodded knowing he _did _care about me that much.

"Hai, and I care about you the same exact way." I told him, squeezing his hand. He nodded, looking extremely nervous. What was going on in his head? Why did he look so nervous? "Shinji?"

"Cho-chan…there's been something I've been wanting to ask you for a while now." he said seriously, staring straight into my eyes. I nodded, waiting for him to ask me. "Do you love me?" I looked at him lovingly and nodded. His smiled widened, and he tilted his head slightly. "How much?"

"More than words can say." I whispered, softly pressing my lips against his. He cupped my cheek, gently moving his lips against mine. I moved closer to him, smiling when he moved his arms around my waist to hold me. He pulled me into his lap, still kissing me, and ran his fingers through my hair. After what seemed like hours we broke apart for air, and I stared up into his grey eyes. He searched my eyes, lightly running his fingers down my cheek.

"Cho-chan, I want you to be mine forever." he said, I nodded in agreement.

"I want to be with you forever." I said honestly, his smile widened. "I never want to be away from you, you're…I'm in love with you." He kissed my forehead before saying

"Will you marry me?" I felt my heart stop in my chest as I stared into his eyes. He…wanted to marry me? I looked down, not able to form any connected thoughts. I loved him, I was _in _love with him, I wanted to be with him forever…and he felt exactly the same way. "Please." I looked up into his eyes, smiling in happiness.

"Yes."

**Author's Note: And of course I make it have a happy ending like that, I'm such a sucker for stuff like that. It's so cute to me, but anywho. Hoped you liked the chapter, thanks for all the imput from my last chapter. I know I didn't really do all that amazing of a job on it, but it was my first time writing something like that so...yeah. FIVE REVIEWS=UPDATE!**

_PREVIEW!!!_

__

Dear Diary,

Haha, I haven't written in this thing in a while, but I felt the need to get some things off my mind. I don't really feel like I can talk to anyone about today so that's where you come in, my dear diary. Yeah, yeah. I know I can talk to Kurisutaru about anything but she's been blubbering and crying since today was my wedding.

Whoops, I forgot to mention to you that I was getting married to Shinji. Yeah, when he actually proposed to me he was rather nervous. The poor dear, made me feel rather awful about the whole situation. It was so cute though, and…just plain adorable in it's own way.

The wedding itself though was nerve-wrecking, I felt like I was going to throw up the whole time…or maybe that was just the sake…eh, beats me. But I felt so sick and nervous the whole time, I didn't think I'd be able to walk in without hurling.


	27. Chapter Twenty Seven: Dear Diary

_Dear Diary,_

_Haha, I haven't written in this thing in a while, but I felt the need to get some things off my mind. I don't really feel like I can talk to anyone about today so that's where you come in, my dear diary. Yeah, yeah. I know I can talk to Kurisutaru about anything but she's been blubbering and crying since today was my wedding._

_Whoops, I forgot to mention to you that I was getting married to Shinji. Yeah, when he actually proposed to me he was rather nervous. The poor dear, made me feel rather awful about the whole situation. It was so cute though, and…just plain adorable in it's own way._

_The wedding itself though was nerve-wrecking, I felt like I was going to throw up the whole time…or maybe that was just the sake…eh, beats me. But I felt so sick and nervous the whole time, I didn't think I'd be able to walk in without hurling. _

_My dress was gorgeous though, I made sure it wasn't going to be white when I bought it. Yeah, I picked a red dress. How did you know? Well, everyone says that red matches with my eyes so a red dress was the best way to go. I didn't know why they had to talk like I didn't know red matched with my eyes, they ARE red after all. It was a beautiful dress though, really flowy and elegant. Jaws had literally dropped when I walked in the room. It was pretty funny to see everyone looking __that__ shocked at how "beautiful" I looked._

_My flowers were rather pretty too, simple compared to my dress though. Just some white roses since I hadn't worn anything white. True my hair was white, but it didn't seem like enough white to balance how I looked...if that makes any sense._

_Oka-san and Otou-san didn't show up, but that didn't surprise me. I had sent an invitation to the both of them out of politeness, but they didn't give me so much as a FUCK YOU! Oh well…it didn't really bother me that they didn't show up. Miyo and the twins were there so that was a major plus. I loved it that my Nee-san had managed to come to the wedding. I knew the twins were most likely driving her crazy, but she stayed through the whole reception._

_When the doors had opened…god it was scary. I was supposed to walk in on my father's arm, but since he wasn't there…so __that__ obviously didn't happen. Instead, I had Love escort me up the aisle. There were actually tears in his eyes, if you can believe it. I felt so upset that he was crying over his fukutaicho getting married, he actually seemed slightly reluctant to hand me over to Shinji._

_I had Lisa as my maid of honor. I would've had Miyo, but the twins came before me. Hina was still pregnant and we were still fighting a little bit, so I knew better than to ask her. I hadn't even bothered asking Hiyori since I knew she wouldn't stand up there in a dress if the world depended on it. Mashiro had whined about wanting to be the flower girl so I'd given her that job. Lisa looked so beautiful today though, she'd pulled her hair out of her pigtails just for my wedding. She was wearing a simple black dress with a little red in it, but there was a slit up the left side that went halfway up her thigh. She looked so pretty, I think her taicho was actually drooling over her. She was giving him glares and hateful looks in return for his drooling…which was funny._

_All in all, the wedding itself seemed to go by on fast forward; everything seemed to blur together. The only thing I could really remember from the speech the guy gave was "I now pronounce you husband and wife, you may kiss the bride." I might have only remembered that because of all those sappy plays I'd watched in the past. Either that or because the kiss was __AMAZING!_

_Kurisutaru would __NOT __shut up during the wedding. First she was whining about how grown up I was, and how beautiful I looked. Then she was growling and cursing about how if Shinji hurt me, then she'd BLAH BLAH BLAH! After that, was her being all nervous like "Maybe you're rushing into things, you should wait a little longer before getting married. You're still so young." And then there was her saying, "Oh my gosh, Cho's getting married. Hey dude, hurry up with the speech and marry them already!" And lastly, but certainly not least, was her crying and moaning about how she was so happy for me and she was sorry about how she was always acting like a bitch. What the hell was wrong with her today? Mood swings much?_

_The reception thingy wasn't all that exciting. I was almost suffocated by congratulations and such. I talked to so many people during that, my brain was about to split open. The only person I really remembered the whole conversation thing with, was Miyo. I talked with her for a good half an hour, catching up on things and whatnot. After she'd left, I got surrounded by women…__AGAIN!_

_Slipping away from all those women was the best part of the reception, I stayed at Shinji's side the rest of the time talking with all my friends. We danced a little bit, but not too much. Mostly he just held me, whispered how beautiful he thought I looked and how much he loved me. It was a pretty amazing feeling, getting told things like that by him. He was such a charmer…but I loved him for it. He was only serious with me._

_Uhhh…I can't really think of anything interesting that happened at the wedding…oh. The twins are actually learning to crawl a little bit, so watching them crawl around in the grass was quite a treat. There were all sorts of awws and everything, the women were obsessing over how cute they were. Well why shouldn't they? Of course my Nee-san's children are going to be adorable and funny. Oh, I didn't mention that they rolled around in the grass a bunch. So cute._

_Anyway though, right now I'm sitting here waiting for Shinji to get back from talking to Yamamoto-Soutaicho. He mentioned something about requesting a bigger room, so we could both move in together since we were married. Having two separate rooms really was a hassle, especially in the morning when we needed to get to our separate squads. If I spent the night in his room, I'd be bolting back to my room, trying to get ready. The same thing with Shinji if he stayed in my room. We needed to be somewhere around the sixth squad area, so we wouldn't have to travel as far._

_Let's see…uhhhh…I'm not really doing a good job at wondering what I should write down now. Did that make any sense? I didn't think so…uhhh…well…oh. Kurisutaru's talking now. I think I'll just write down our conversation since I want to finish this damn diary. Just a few more pages!!!_

_**Hey Cho?**_

Yeah?

_**Whacha doin?**_

Writing in my diary.

_**Uh huh…I just noticed something.**_

Oh good, what'd you realize?

_**Aizen didn't bother you at all today.**_

He didn't did he…I wonder why…

_**Maybe he changed his mind about it all…**_

Doubt it, most likely because it was my wedding.

_**And he was afraid of getting close to you because of Shinji.**_

Exactly, Shinji terrifies him…I think.

_**Perhaps…we don't really know all that much about Aizen huh?**_

Not really, besides that he's a creep.

_**True true…so what're you gonna do when Shinji gets back?**_

"…"

_**It IS the wedding night after all.**_

I know that.

_**Which means SEX!**_

I'm not a virgin anyway.

_**So…sex is nice?**_

Yeah…

_**Is Shinji any good?**_

KURISUTARU!

_**Hehe! Gomen, I couldn't resist.**_

Yeah, you could've.

_**Not really, since you guys did it that one day…I've been curious.**_

Nande?

_**Cuz…**_

Because…?

_**Mhm, I just kept it to myself for a few months.**_

Obviously, and you just _had _to ask now?

_**Mhm, had to embarrass you.**_

You're such a bitch.

_**That wasn't nice at all Cho.**_

So? Who said I have to be nice?

_**Me!**_

Do I listen to you half the time?

_**No, and it makes me mad.**_

Boohoo! Poor you.

_**MEANY!**_

Uh huh…I'm done talking to you.

_**Demo-**_

_She's just so whiney all the time. I don't understand how I put up with her diary._

_**HEY!**_

_It's rather upsetting that she always feels the need to comment on every single little thing._

_**Voicing you're opinion is-**_

_Not listening to her is quite fun after all._

_**Why you-**_

_And it really pisses her off obviously._

_**OK, THAT'S IT!**_

_I don't get why she thinks I'm listening to her._

_**Maybe cuz you're writing down everything I say.**_

_Just because I write stuff on this pages, doesn't mean I'm __ACTUALLY__ listening. I just need to waste the last of these pages._

_**Waste of a perfectly good tree.**_

_The tree wasn't a good tree though…I think. Hey, that sounds like the door opening. I wonder if Shinji's back. Oh yeah, he's back. And he looks like he's planning something…kuso._

**Author's Note: So you all might be thinking, diary entry? What the hell? The reason for this is that I would have written about the wedding, but I've never been to an actual one so I didn't know exactly how they went. I thought a diary entry would be cute too, it was a simple way to write a little bit of stuff about the wedding. Thank you all for reviewing, and I'm glad you all like this story so much. I'm so proud of myself, two chapters in one day. Yay me! FIVE REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER!**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_"It's time Cho-chan." he teased. I lowered my head, wondering what he was talking about exactly._

_"What do you mean?" I asked quietly, he chuckled running a finger down my cheek._

_"I need your assistance Cho-chan." he said, sounding amused. I nodded, keeping my eyes glued to the floor._

_"Hai." I said softly, he chuckled_

_"You're so obedient, aren't you Cho-chan?" he asked, I nodded._

_"What do you want me to do, Aizen-sama?" I asked, sounding emotionless..._


	28. Chapter Twenty Eight: Aizen's Orders

I sighed boredly, looking around Shinji's office. He needed to get here already, I was bored out of my mind. I knew he wasn't even paying attention at that taicho meeting he was attending, and I needed something to occupy my thoughts. More like _someone. _I giggled thinking about Shinji and continued smiling to myself. I looked back out the window, staring up at the sky. I wasn't even really looking at the sky though, I was more focused with the clouds. After a few long minutes of studying the clouds, I moved my eyes to studying everything that wasn't up in the sky. Everything looked so beautiful during this time of year, I didn't think I'd ever understand why…I shrugged to myself, not understanding my own thoughts. Life was exciting but so confusing at the same time. I giggled again, knowing that none of my thoughts were really making any sense, and continued with bouncing around on the window ledge.

A good number of years had passed since I'd joined the Gotei 13, but it didn't really feel like it. Time there seemed to go by so fast, like on fast-forward really. So much stuff had happened in the many years that I'd been here. Well, to start off. I was an aunt to the most adorable set of twin boys my sister had given birth to. Their names were Akashi and Akifumi, I didn't understand why Miyo had picked two names that sounded slightly similar. That was Miyo for you though, she was a confusing person. Hina had also had her baby, but now she'd had three children, all little girls. She'd named her children Eimi, Juria, and Kimiyo. She and Okito were actually married as well, which was rather amazing. They'd be married for seven years in September. Emori was at this time, engaged to a very sweet girl named Masuzu. She was a member of the tenth squad and absolutely perfect for Emori. Taiga's wife, Riri, was currently pregnant with their first child so Taiga was rather excited about the whole 'I'm gonna be a daddy' thing.

Shinji and I…we'd gotten married in April, during the spring. We'd been married for a little over eight years, and it was the most wonderful time in my life. We were so happy together, and I was so amazed that someone was able to love me as much as Shinji did. I loved him with all my heart and more, and I knew he felt the same way towards me. I didn't think I'd ever be able to find happiness like the happiness I found with him, it felt like I was part of some never ending dream. I never wanted to wake up from it either. Shinji was amazing, perfect for me, the most amazing man in my life, and…I couldn't explain anything else. There was no reason to because we were happy together, perfect for each other, and our relationship was _never_ going to crumble to pieces.

All in all Soul Society had changed slightly, a few new people but nothing too big. I was still fukutaicho for Love, and I wasn't planning on changing from fukutaicho anytime soon. Yeah, being a taicho would be cool…but I didn't think I could handle that much responsibility. Being a fukutaicho meant I didn't have _as_ much, and lucky for me I had the taicho helping me with it all. Within our little group there was a big bond, everyone had _fully_ accepted me into the group once Shinji and I were married. I didn't think I could've got any closer with them all, but that was definitely not true in the least.

I hadn't reestablished contact with my parents, they'd disowned me so I had nothing to do with them. They hadn't even showed up to my wedding, none of my family besides Miyo and the twins had. I didn't really want anything to do with my parents and their noble life shit. It was just a waste of my time, and I was determined not to be dragged back into that world. I was perfectly happy being a normal person, having normal wealth, but I still had a not even close to normal husband, since Shinji was just so amazing that is.

Aizen, he hadn't toyed with me for years, but I knew he was still watching me. He knew that he was still in control of me, and that I was going to listen to him no matter what. All because I wanted to keep Shinji safe…and I would do whatever he wanted. I just loved Shinji that much, that I would sacrifice myself to keep him safe. I was like Aizen's puppet, he just had yet to pull my strings and control me like he wanted. But I knew he would when he wanted to. Like he had told me in the hallway so many years ago, it would be a while before he needed to use me, it really had been a while. He hadn't told me to do anything for him, he hadn't pulled me into his little world yet, he'd just left me alone. I was hoping he might've lost interest in me, but I didn't believe myself on that at all. Aizen never lost interest in his toys, and that's all I was to him…a toy.

I looked over my shoulder, hearing the door open and almost cringed seeing it was Aizen. Speak of the devil. He gave me an amused look, not surprised that I was in here, and slid the door shut. He hadn't given me a look _this _intense in years. He'd sneak the slightly amused looks my way all the time, but now…it was different. It was intimidating…and terrifying.

_**Keep your guard up.**_

_Right, I'll make sure I do._

_**You haven't had to deal with his shit for years, but that doesn't mean he's finished with you. Keep focused.**_

_Gotcha._

Another thing, Kurisutaru had gotten passed her stuck up bitchiness and turned into a real friend to me. I didn't know how it had happened, but after years of it she'd just transformed. I was happy knowing that we were getting along more than we used to, and she wasn't all about just teasing me. She was giving rather good advice to me about what I shoulder do if I ever wound up in a certain situation with Aizen. It was a bit of role-playing in a way, we had tons of fun with it when we'd add something extremely stupid in it too.

"Konnichiwa Sousuke." I said, sounding sweet as usual. Aizen nodded, putting some reports on Shinji's desk.

"Konnichiwa Cho, how are you this fine day?" he asked with his utterly fake politeness. I shrugged, looking back towards the window nervously.

_**If you stay turned away from him, make sure you have your guard up.**_

_I know, it's already up._

_**Ok.**_

"I'm doing alright." I replied, twirling a strand of my hair around a finger. "And yourself?"

"Fine, working on training the newest recruits." he said, still more fake politeness. I nodded, staring out the window.

"I'm currently dealing with that. Aikawa-taicho is too busy reading manga to even bother training them." I said, scratching my head.

_**Here he comes.**_

Like Kurisutaru predicted I felt his reiatsu come up behind me and almost flinched feeling him place his hands on my shoulders. He was touching me again, and it felt like his reiatsu was crushing me. It was so powerful. I licked my lips nervously feeling him lean in closer to me and whisper in my ear

"It's time Cho-chan." he teased. I lowered my head, wondering what he was talking about exactly.

"What do you mean?" I asked quietly, he chuckled running a finger down my cheek. I kept my back to him, forcing myself not to flinch at his touch.

"I need your assistance Cho-chan." he said, sounding amused. I nodded, keeping my eyes glued to the floor.

"Hai Aizen-sama." I said softly. He chuckled, running his fingers through my hair. He was seriously contaminating my body through all the touching and stuff, but I knew I couldn't pull away. I had to listen to whatever he said and do whatever he wanted.

"You're so obedient, aren't you Cho-chan?" he asked, I nodded knowing that was what he wanted to hear from me.

"What do you want me to do, Aizen-sama?" I asked, sounding emotionless. I was starting to feel like a robot now…or a puppet. _His _puppet. He dropped two folders in my lap, one addressed to Kensei…the other to Urahara Kisuke.

"You are to deliver this to Muguruma-taicho, stating that it's an order from Yamamoto-Soutaicho." he instructed, I nodded. "The one to Urahara shall not be delivered until I give you the order to do so." I nodded again, playing with a strand of my hair.

"Hai, Aizen-sama." I whispered, he stroked the top of my head teasingly.

"Good." I lowered my eyes, so this was what he wanted me to do. I was so sweet and innocent that people found me trustworthy. If I said something was true, they automatically believed it. It was such a simple thing, but Aizen had found it helpful to him. He'd known from almost the beginning of my time in the fifth squad that Shinji and I would form some type of relationship, and I'd become friends with all of his friends. It seemed like he was going after all of Shinji's friends, and that's why he was using me for this. They trusted me, more than anyone. I finally eased up, when Aizen backed away from me and walked out of the room.

"What's going on?" I mumbled, looking at the folders.

_**Beats me…but it's definitely not good at all.**_

_I think we both realized that._

_**I don't know what we're going to do…**_

_Me either, I need to go deliver this to Kensei though…I wonder what Aizen's planning. I wish I didn't have to hurt my friends to protect Shinji._

_**I know, but it's the only way.**_

I sighed, not wanting to do as he said, but knew I had to. I stood up, taking both the folders in my hand and walked a little ways across the office. When I made it to the door, it slid open, and I found myself face to face with Shinji. He grinned, cupping my face in his hands, and leaned down gently pressing his lips against mine. I smiled into the kiss, happy to have him here when I needed him, and pressed my lips back against his. After a minute or two he broke the kiss, staring down into my eyes.

"And yer leaving without even lettin' me know ya were here?" Shinji asked teasingly. I giggled, shrugging a bit.

"Gomen Shinji-kun." I apologized, lowering my head. "Demo…the Soutaicho wanted me to give something to Kensei so I actually can't stay long." Shinji nodded, pressing his lips against my forehead.

"Gomen fer not bein' here earlier love. I got sidetracked by Hiyori." he explained. I nodded, knowing Hiyori must've attacked him out of the blue like she normally did.

"It's fine, I need to go anyway." I said, stepping around him. He grabbed my arm, stopping me, and roughly pressed his lips against mine. I moaned loudly, loving how aggressive he could be, and wrapped my arms around his neck keeping him close to me. His hands were traveling all over my body, rubbing through my clothing, and damn was I liking it. "Shinji." He chuckled, kissing down my neck. "Not…here." I asked, moaning quietly. He grumbled complaining, but not before placing one last kiss on my neck. I pouted to myself, not liking that I had to leave, but kissed his cheek.

"We'll finish this later." Shinji said, I rolled my eyes feeling a blush on my cheeks.

"Sure sure." I said sarcastically. He chuckled, lightly pressing his lips to my forehead.

"I can't wait ta here ya scream fer me." I felt my cheeks going hotter and bolted from his office. He laughed in amusement, closing the door. I tried wiping the blush off my face, but it didn't really work. I hated when he said things like that, it always got me blushing and _kept_ me blushing for a good while. I covered my face, groaning quietly in annoyance. Why'd he have to do that to me? First, he turns me on. Then, he embarrasses me…how did that even work? I wrinkled my nose, walking down the hallway of the ninth squad. I knocked on the door to Kensei's office, already hating myself, and heard

"Damn it, shut up Mashiro!"

"Kensei's a meany!" Mashiro complained

"Come in." Kensei said "Stop it Mashiro." I slid the door open to find Mashiro rolling around on the floor, throwing a tantrum. "Hello Cho." I looked away from Mashiro, smiling at Kensei.

"Is this a bad time?" I asked sweetly

"Cho-chan!" Mashiro exclaimed, hopping to her feet. She hugged me, and I smiled a bit.

"No, perfect timing." Kensei said, glaring at Mashiro's back. I giggled to myself and pulled back from the hug.

"I have a report for you from Yamamoto-Soutaicho." I said, walking closer to him. He nodded, and I handed him the folder Aizen had given me.

"Arigato Cho." I nodded, smiling and walked out of the office. I walked back to the room Shinji and I shared in sadness. I hated being under Aizen's control, and I hated lying to my friends even more. I opened the door, walking inside without any real emotion in me besides sadness, and slid the door shut. As soon as I realized I was alone, my fist hit the wall. I felt tears well up in my eyes and hung my head, crying a bit. Why did it have to be me, why?

I stayed in my room a few more hours, not really knowing what to do. I couldn't figure out what there was that I _could_ do. Aizen had me trapped, and I knew that I had to do whatever he wanted. I cried a little more, finally pulling myself off the bed. I wiped at my eyes, grabbing the folder for Urahara. I didn't know when or where Aizen would show up so I needed to have this with me at all times. I walked out of my room, knowing it was around six or so, and walked around Seireitei without any real plan for as to where I was going. The next thing I knew, I'd wound up on a little bridge, staring down at the water.

"Cho." I looked up, finding a pair of brown eyes staring at me. Brown eyes, that I despised.

"Aizen-sama." I whispered, looking back down at the water.

"Deliver the report to Urahara-taicho at once. You're to go with whoever he sends, leaving them once you're far enough in the forest." he ordered, walking passed me. I nodded, knowing he didn't stop and harass me because people were watching, and headed off to the Department of Research and Development. It was a new thing Kisuke had put in when he'd become a taicho, it was quite a breakthrough when it came to science and stuff. I walked in, knocking on the door, and heard him say with a carefree tone

"Come in." I sighed, entering the room. There were a few people in there, doing some of the scientific things, and I looked at Urahara. "Hirako-fukutaicho." I smiled, loving that I had Shinji's last name, and held the report out to him. He grabbed it, looking over it before explaining it to Hiyori. "Hiyori. I'll be sending you with Cho for this."

"Nani? Why do I gotta go?" Hiyori screeched

"You're the only person I trust enough for this mission." Urahara said, Hiyori grumbled but nodded nonetheless. We walked out together, I had a feeling that something _very _bad was about to happen.

**Author's Note: Oh no, this isn't good at all. Curse you Aizen, we all loath you for doing this to Cho. How dare you!!! I didn't like writing this chapter too much, Aizen's such a bastard. Damn him straight to hell. So I bet you all wanna know what's gonna happen huh? Review and you'll find out. FIVE REVIEWS=NEW CHAPTER!!!**

_PREVIEW!!!_

_"Cho." Shinji gasped_

_"Your wife has been quite the little helper during all this." Aizen said, petting my hair teasingly. "You didn't even notice that all these years she was under my control."_

_'Shinji.' I turned, facing Aizen in shock._

_"You promised you wouldn't hurt him!" I yelled, sounding hysterical "You promised that if I did whatever you wanted, you wouldn't touch him!" Aizen continued smiling._

_"Now Cho-chan, it wasn't my fault he was one of the taichos sent here." he said. I felt my body shaking in anger, and I looked back at Shinji sadly._

_"Shinji…" I lowered my eyes, wondering what I had done. "I'm…sorry."_


	29. Chapter Twenty Nine: Hollowification

We ran through the forest faster, trying to find some of the members of the ninth squad. We really didn't have any idea where we were going, or what all was happening. We _did _know, that we needed to be careful. With all these Shinigami disappearing like this, it was dangerous for the two of us to be out on our own. True, we were fukutaichos. But even Kensei had gone missing, and he was a _taicho_. I didn't know what I was supposed to do now that I was out here though. Before I started questioning everything going on, I needed to get away from Hiyori, as Aizen instructed.

"Do we even have any idea where we're going?" I asked Hiyori, as we ran further through the forest. She shook her head, huffing.

"Maybe splittin' up is the best bet." she suggested, I nodded.

"I'll go that way, you keep on this path." I advised, she nodded in agreement. I shunpoed away from her, into the trees, and found a place to sit down. I didn't know what I was supposed to be doing from here, Aizen hadn't given me anymore instructions after the bridge incident. I guessed the best thing for me to do was sit here and wait for someone to come tell me what to do. I really didn't have a clue who Aizen's followers were though, I didn't know who he was working with. That wasn't a very good thing for me. I sighed in utter sadness, not liking what I was doing to my friends in the least. There wasn't anything I could do though, Aizen had me trapped.

_**Cho?**_

_Hai Kurisutaru?_

_**Gomen.**_

I stared at the ground confused, I didn't have any idea what she was apologizing for. She hadn't done anything so there was no reason for her to be sorry.

_You haven't done anything._

_**I know.**_

_Then why are you apologizing?_

She didn't say anything for a moment, and I looked down at my Zanpakuto. What was she so sorry for, and why did she sound like she was about to cry?

_**I feel bad that this all happened, I wish-**_

_Don't apologize. It's not your fault._

_**Demo-**_

_Please don't argue with me. You didn't do anything so I'm not going to blame you for something that wasn't your fault._

_**If I had told you to stay away from Aizen from the beginning though-**_

_Do you think I would've listened?_

_**Most likely not.**_

_Exactly. Even if I had stayed away from him, he wouldn't have stayed away from me. There was no getting around this. I was screwed over when I was put in the fifth squad._

_**I feel like…I should've told you something different. Maybe if we'd done something differently, we wouldn't be going through this right now.**_

_I guess we'll never know huh?_

_**Nope.**_

I nodded in agreement, wondering what I was supposed to do about all this. It was dark out now, all the stars were sparkling in the sky. It reminded me of the first time Shinji and I had an intimate moment together under the stars. It was so beautiful. I remembered him holding me close to him, the way he smelled that night, how nervous I'd been, my heart pounding against my chest. Just everything. I didn't think there was anything that could ruin the night before, now I knew better than that though.

"Cho-chan?" I looked up into the face of a little kid. I knew his name was Ichimaru Gin, and that he had pretty exceptional skills for his age. What was he doing out here?

_**Beats me, maybe you should take him back to Seireitei. Aizen hasn't given ya anymore orders.**_

_That might be a good idea. It's dangerous out here for little kids._

_**Mhm, especially with everything that's going on out here with the disappearances.**_

_Yeah, we don't want a little kid disappearing with all the Shinigami._

_**So true.**_

"Hai?" I asked, standing up. He smiled a very fox-like smile and reached up, grabbing my hand. He turned, leading me off in some direction. I had no idea where we were going, but it seemed like Gin did. How would he know where he was going in here when I didn't? "Gin-kun, where are we-"

"Aizen-sama's ready fer us ta join 'im." Gin said, still smiling that same smile. I felt my heart sink, so Aizen was controlling Gin as well. Gin didn't seem upset about it though, or intimidated…he just looked…pleased to be doing this.

_**Aizen had to have brainwashed him.**_

"You're working with Aizen?" I asked quietly, he nodded.

"Yep, Aizen-sama's the best. Helped give me power and kept me from dyin'. I own 'im." Gin said, sounding happy. I nodded, not understand why a child had to be dragged into this mess. Couldn't Aizen have convinced someone a little older to follow him? Then again, kids were easier to control. You showed them kindness, and they followed your orders without question, Aizen had to have done this to Gin. The poor child didn't understand what evil was, and he was helping it.

We finally came into a little clearing, I could see Aizen standing up ahead. Standing beside him was someone that shocked me…it was Tosen Kaname, he was from Kensei's squad. So he was working with Aizen as well…and he'd betrayed Kensei. This wasn't good at all. As we drew closer, I could see seven people all lying on the ground. One was barely standing, panting hard.

_**Oh no, this isn't good.**_

_What's going-_

My thoughts stopped hearing Aizen say something.

"I chose you, Hirako-taicho." Aizen said, sounding malicious. What was going on here?

"Aizen-sama." Gin said smiling "Got 'er right here." Aizen turned, smiling that same smile.

"Ah, why thank you Gin-kun." Aizen said, taking my arm and pulling me to stand infront of him. I moved my eyes up from the ground, locking them with Shinji's.

_**Nani…**_

'Oh god…what's happened to him? What's going on here?' I looked around at everyone else, there were masks on their faces, and Hiyori looked seriously injured.

_**We have to do something, this is all because of Aizen Cho.**_

"Cho." Shinji gasped

"Your wife has been quite the little helper during all this." Aizen said, petting my hair teasingly. "You didn't even notice that all these years she was under my control."

'Shinji.' I turned, facing Aizen in shock.

"You promised you wouldn't hurt him!" I yelled, sounding hysterical "You promised that if I did whatever you wanted, you wouldn't touch him!" Aizen continued smiling.

"Now Cho-chan, it wasn't my fault he was one of the taichos sent here." he said. I felt my body shaking in anger, and I looked back at Shinji sadly.

"Shinji…" I lowered my eyes, wondering what I had done. "I'm…sorry." I turned to Aizen, pulling my Zanpakuto off my side. "DIE!!!"

CLASH!

Our blades met, Aizen still smiling.

"Dear me Cho-chan, you-" I never did give him the chance to finish his sentence.

"Shatter, Kurisutaru." My Zanpakuto blade shattered in a million tiny glass pieces, spinning all around us. I shunpoed backwards, waiting for my shikai to take affect. All the glass directed itself towards Aizen. Loud booms and bangs echoed all around the area Aizen was standing in, hopefully the explosions from my shikai would destroy him. If they didn't, he'd suffer an even worse death. While the explosions continued going off I ran to Shinji's side, kneeling down next to him, touching my fingers to his head.

"Cho." he choked. It looked like half of a Hollow mask was on his face, and it looked like it was slowly spreading. I had to finish this battle and get Shinji and the others help.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to let you die here." I said, feeling tearing running down my cheeks. "I'm sorry Shinji, I tried to keep you safe…and my efforts were a waste. Rest now, I'll take care of you." He looked like he wanted to say something, but whatever was happening to him was draining all his strength away. I needed to hurry and finish this. I stood, quickly turning in Aizen's direction. "Kurisutaru, implode."

This was a technique I'd been working on for years, it wasn't a bankai but it wasn't what my shikai's actual power was. My shikai made things explode, anything the glass touched exploded. But this other technique, I'd managed to create myself. Implode means explode from the inside, the glass would lodge itself into Aizen's body causing it to explode from the inside out. This would make sure he died.

The glass flew at Aizen, and he shunpoed away avoiding it. I glared, flicking my eyes to where he was. The glass followed my eyes, going straight at Aizen. I felt a jolt go through my body, a powerful and painful jolt. I dropped the guard of my Zanpakuto, clutching my head. What was happening. I heard explosions going off, I hoped that my implosion technique had gotten Aizen. I screamed, feeling something hot running through my veins. It felt like I was burning, like my insides were on fire. I dropped to my knees, still holding onto my head, screaming as I did so.

"It looks as if the Hollowification has taken it's affect on you as well Cho-chan." Aizen, how had the bastard managed to survive?

"Aiz-" I coughed feeling something oozing up my throat, out my mouth. Some white substance, white…like the Hollow masks on everyone else. Damn, he'd gotten me infected too? I screamed in pain, not having the slightest clue how this had managed to happen. I felt something stab through my stomach and looked up into Aizen's brown eyes.

"You all have been quite the wonderful test subjects…goodbye." Aizen's voice rang in my ears. I was going to die, we were _all _going to die. Shinji…I was the reason he was going to die tonight. Why did all of this have to happen? Why couldn't I have stopped this…it was all my fault. I felt the world slow down, everything going into a blur, the white forming around my face…the Hollow mask. I felt myself fall forward, then…darkness.

**Author's Note: Oh no, this isn't good in the least. Cho and everyone...oh no. What ever shall we do. Review and you might just find out. FIVE REVIEWS=_POSSIBLE_ NEW CHAPTER! Again two updates in one day, I'm pretty proud of myself. Your lovely reviews keep me all motivated to write. Thanks a ton for the support!**

_MAYBE A PREVIEW...MAYBE A JOKE...REVIEW AND YOU'LL KNOW!!!_

_I opened my eyes, groaning to myself. What had happened, what was going on, where was I, and why did my body feel so sore? I looked around at the ceiling of the room, a room I didn't recognize, and slowly sat up. I looked down at my body at the bandages around my arms and the ones wrapped around my stomach, what the hell had…? It clicked…Aizen…oh god. The Hollow masks…the battle…Shinji. Where was everyone? Were they all ok? I quickly got to my feet, looking all over the room. I saw a door up ahead, a light was peaking through the bottom. I bolted to the door, skidding to a stop infront of it. I grabbed the handle and slid the door open..._


	30. Chapter Thirty: The Final Battle

I opened my eyes, groaning to myself. What had happened, what was going on, where was I, and why did my body feel so sore? I looked around at the ceiling of the room, a room I didn't recognize, and slowly sat up. I looked down at my body at the bandages around my arms and the ones wrapped around my stomach, what the hell had…? It clicked…Aizen…oh god. The Hollow masks…the battle…Shinji. Where was everyone? Were they all ok? I quickly got to my feet, looking all over the room. I saw a door up ahead, a light was peaking through the bottom. I bolted to the door, skidding to a stop infront of it. I grabbed the handle and slid the door open.

All heads turned in my direction. The whole group was alive, all my friends. Everyone looked so beaten up, and there was a loneliness in all their eyes. A sort of aching look, but anger. Tons of anger, and a look that said they wanted revenge. I tore my eyes away from their expressions, trying to find Shinji in all the faces. I finally found him, my heart skipping a beat. He'd cut his hair off short, it was different but it didn't matter. I didn't care if he looked different as long as he was alive.

"Cho-chan." Shinji said quietly. I smiled slightly before I felt a fist collide with my face. I dropped to the ground on my knees, covering my bloody nose, and felt a kick to my face.

"You fucking bitch!" Hiyori exclaimed, kicking my stomach. I groaned at the pain but didn't try fighting her. I deserved any bit of physical abuse I got from them, I'd betrayed my friends. "How could fucking do this to us you cutthroat bitch! You betrayed us!" Another few kicks and punches before they suddenly stopped. I looked up from my hands, now holding a ton of blood, to see Rose and Love holding Hiyori back.

"Hiyori calm down." Love ordered

"Fuck you!" Hiyori screamed "She betrayed us! She deserves it." I lowered my head, knowing she was right, and felt my eyes burning. I felt some tears rolling down my cheeks and someone took my face in their hands. I looked up into Shinji's eyes, and he stroked my cheek with his thumb.

"Cho-chan, it's alright." he said, I shook my head.

"No it's not." I cried, Hiyori stopped flailing around and shut her mouth. I could feel everyone's eyes on me, but I couldn't stop crying. "It's all my fault this happened, he said he'd kill you if I didn't do whatever he said. I wanted to protect you Shinji, and now everyone's…" I stopped, closing my eyes still crying. I felt Shinji's arms go around me, hugging my body to his. "Gomen, gomen, gomen." I repeated, crying harder.

"It's not yer fault Cho." Shinji said softly, stroking my hair. I continued crying and heard Hiyori say slowly

"Ya…were tryin' ta protect him?" I nodded, pulling my face away from Shinji's chest to look at Hiyori.

"I didn't know what he was going to do." I coughed "He just told me to give Kensei the forged report, give one to Urahara, and go with whoever Urahara sent to investigate before leaving them alone." Hiyori nodded and bowed her head.

"Gomen Cho, I didn't know…I…" She stopped, not knowing what else to say. I felt Shinji wipe the tears out of my eyes, and Hiyori handed him a cloth quietly. He nodded, thanking her, and proceeded to wipe the blood and tears off my face.

"Cho-chan, none of this is yer fault. I've known fer years Aizen was up ta somethin, but I never figured it out. If this is anyone's fault, it's mine." Shinji said quietly, I shook my head disagreeing with him. This wasn't his fault at all, it was _mine_.

"Shinji please, it's all my-"

"No, it's not." he interrupted, looking into my eyes. I swallowed, still staring into his eyes, and he smiled slightly. "Cho-chan, ya tried protectin' me. No one's ever done somethin' like that fer me, arigato." I felt tears begin rolling down my cheeks again, and he lightly pressed his lips against mine. "I love you Cho." I sniffed and buried my face in his shoulder.

"I love you too Shinji." I whispered. He held me close to him, gently stroking my hair, and kissed the top of my head.

"We'll get back at Aizen." Shinji said seriously "We'll make him pay for what he's done to us."

"What are we?" I asked, looking up at Shinji.

"Kisuke explained it as somethin' called Hollowification. We're Shinigami, that have obtained Hollow powers." he explained

"We need a nifty name for our group." Mashiro said brightly from beside Kensei. He rolled his eyes but she ignored him, running a cloth down his cheek to wipe the dry blood off. Even though they argued so much, I knew deep down they both cared deeply for each other. Mashiro knew how to be serious, even though she was a child at heart. And Kensei knew when to be patient and kind towards her, even though she annoyed the shit out of him.

"A name?" Hachigen asked curiously "What could we call ourselves?" We all pondered over this, knowing that having a name for what we were was a good idea. We couldn't call ourselves Shinigami anymore because we weren't Shinigami. We couldn't call ourselves Hollows, because we weren't full fledged Hollows. I thought back to the battle in the forest, they all had been wearing what looked like Hollow Masks…masks.

"Visoreds." I said softly to myself. Everyone looked at me. I smiled a bit and said louder "We're Visoreds." Shinji tilted his head a bit, thinking about the name.

"Masked army." Shinji mumbled, grinning a bit "I like it." I giggled a little, and Lisa pulled her hair out of her braided pigtails. She pulled her hair back behind her shoulders, and began braiding it in one braid. I watched her for a moment and finally turned my attention to Shinji.

"You cut your hair." I said softly, he nodded chuckling.

"It'll be harder fer Soul Society ta recognize me." he stated, I looked at him confused.

"Nani? Isn't Soul Society helping us?" I asked quietly

"Fuck no." Hiyori shouted, kicking the wall in anger

"They were going to have us executed." Rose said. I lowered my head, still feeling like all this was my fault.

"Nande?" I asked sadly "We're victims."

"They didn't think we'd be able to be saved." Kensei said. "Kisuke was the one that stopped the Hollowification." I tilted my head to the side, Kisuke smart, but how'd he manage to stop it without killing us.

"He created this thing called a Hougyoku, it stopped us from becoming full fledged Hollows." Love said, I nodded.

I scratched my head, smiling when Shinji kissed my cheek. I was happy he wasn't angry with me, I didn't know what I would've done had he been angry. I looked around at everyone, silence just filled the room. No one really seemed like they wanted to talk anymore about what was going on, so I didn't ask anymore questions. I'd talk to Shinji later about everything else. I looked up at Shinji, smiling when he gently pressed his lips against mine. I was so happy he was alright, he wasn't dead, and nothing was going to take him from me. Shinji broke the kiss, gently stroking my face, and I smiled sadly. Wait…where was my Zanpakuto?

"Where's Kurisutaru?" I asked, trying to stay calm. Shinji smiled, helping me to my feet.

"Up in our room." he said, holding me against him. I nodded, closing my eyes. "Guys, let's all head ta sleep. We're gonna hafta discuss the situation with our Hollows once we get our strength back." Everyone nodded in agreement, and Shinji led me up some stairs. I gripped his hand tightly, never wanting to let go, and he opened up a door. I followed him inside the room and smiled seeing my Zanpakuto setting on a table with his.

"Kurisutaru." I whispered, approaching the sword. I touched the guard, smiling as I did so.

_**Cho, you alright?**_

_I'm fine, just feeling like shit about everything._

_**Don't worry, everything'll work out.**_

_How can you be so sure?_

_**Because I'm me of course.**_

I almost giggled at her sarcastic tone, this was a bad situation and she still managed to get me to smile. I guess, even after all the bitchiness from her, I really did appreciate her. I didn't know what I would've done without Kurisutaru.

_Ok yeah, of course._

_**Anyway, get some rest. Spend time with Shinji, he's worried about you.**_

_Arigato Kurisutaru._

I looked away from my sword, locking eyes with Shinji. I glided back across the room into his arms, and he stroked my hair. I snuggled closer to him, never wanting him to let me go. I didn't ever think I'd be able to get over how I expected Aizen to keep his promise to me, he was a sneak and I'd known it. But I still had hoped he'd keep his promise and not harm Shinji, but I knew it didn't matter now. There was no way to turn back time, and we'd just have to use these new abilities to our advantage. Aizen was going to be sorry he'd screwed us over like this, we'd make him pay.

"Cho-chan." I looked up at Shinji, smiling when he kissed my forehead. "I love you." My smile widened slightly, and I kissed his cheek.

"I love you too Shinji, I'm so-" He stopped my words with his lips, roughly kissing me. I moaned slightly and took a step back when he took one forward. We stumbled backwards, still kissing fiercely, and I fell back on the bed. I looked up at Shinji, smiling again when his lips crashed back down on mine.

This was like a new beginning. We could start new lives here in the world of the living and focus hard on getting ourselves stronger. We'd have to work very hard, controlling these new powers would be a challenge for us but we were strong people. We'd be there to support each other and help each other through all the hard times we'd face. Time would pass slowly for us, I knew that for a fact. But when the time finally came that we would be able to take revenge, we wouldn't hesitate to take the chance. Aizen, Ichimaru, and Tosen would pay for what they'd done to us. Aizen especially. If Shinji wasn't the one to kill him, I knew I would be. We'd kill him together when we got the chance, he would die by our hands.

With Shinji here, standing beside me through it all, I knew I could be strong. With Shinji always beside me, I wasn't afraid. I could handle myself, but I didn't need to. I had Shinji here, willing to take care of me through it all and Shinji knew that I was there to take care of him through all this as well. Our love was something you couldn't buy, it wasn't something that came around every day either. Our love was eternal, our love was everlasting, it was something beautiful that was meant to be cherished. Our love and feelings towards each other was one hundred percent _real_.

I smiled into the kiss, there was no way that anything would ever be able to tear us apart. Oh Aizen would pay for even trying. Oh yes, he would pay.

_Aizen'll hafta wait, fer now yer main focus is me. My lady._

Present Day

The nine of us had finally arrived, we had made it inside the barrier Yamamoto-Soutaicho had placed up…thanks to finding his terrified fukutaicho outside the barrier that is. We were standing in the sky, staring towards the battle going on. Nothing big was really happening, nothing that I considered big anyway. Some of the taichos were fighting with the Espada, but when another Arrancar appeared that's when I got slightly excited for the battle at hand. When a huge hollow like monster appeared behind the Arrancar that's when I felt a smirk tug at my lips. I was very excited for this fight. A few taichos went down, but they hadn't died.

When the fire from Yamamoto-Soutaicho's Zanpakuto was blown away by the creature, my eyes narrowed at Aizen standing in-between Ichimaru and Tosen. The wind passed by us, my halfway down my back length hair, blowing around my face. All the layering and razoring done in my hair, made it look more choppy than it really was. I watched Aizen through my razored bangs, almost smiling as I did so. He would die today, it was the end for him. With my Zanpakuto resting on my shoulder, my hair blowing around behind me, and my red eyes I had the feeling I looked rather dangerous to the young Shinigami.

I smirked, still watching Aizen from a distance and looked at my husband. Shinji still had the shit-eating grin on his face, excited that we would finally be able to take revenge on Aizen after all these years of waiting.

"Shall we move closer?" I asked plainly, no real emotion in my voice. Shinji's grin widened as he glanced over at me.

"Come now Cho-chan, show a lil' bit of that sweet-heart attitude of yers." he asked of me, I smirked amused.

"Of course Shinji." I said amused.

"Let's get goin." Shinji instructed, we shunpoed closer to the battle. This would be the final battle, and today would be the end of everything. We _would_ have our revenge. I stopped beside Shinji, my back turned towards the side of his body, my snow colored hair blowing passed us. My black with red splatters halter top fluttered a bit, since the bottom of the shirt flared out a little. My dark wash skinny jeans were perfect for this battle, they were easy to move in. My red ballet flats…they were just cute shoes, I just liked wearing them. I turned my face slightly, my red eyes locked on Aizen's face, and I smirked again watching Shinji raise his hat up a bit. He looked at Aizen, that same grin on his face, and said

"Wait."

All heads turned in our direction, shocked expressions on all the people's faces. Aizen looked over, narrowing his eyes before they locked on our group of Visoreds. Shinji smirked saying

"Long time now see, Aizen."

'Now, the _real_ battle begins.'

**Author's Note: The end, I would like to thank you all for all of the wonderful reviews and support I've received throughout the development of this story. I know the ending itself sucks, but we have yet to figure out what happens between Aizen and all the Visoreds. This ending was the best way for me to go, I hope you're all not too dissapointed at it. I would like to also let you know about a story I'm currently developing, it's another ShinjiXOC story. Hopefully I'll be able to put the actual battle in it, the manga should be a little further ahead by then. Thank you all for reading again, and I hope it wasn't a dissapointment.**

_The Pendulum Slows, a Shinji romance._

_I let a soft sigh pass through my parted lips, not bothering to turn around hearing the familiar light footsteps across the roof. I already knew who it was, and I always wondered why he couldn't just let me stay up here on my own sometimes. He must've guessed something was wrong, I always came up here when there was something on my mind. I never could stay in my room when things were bothering me, and he knew it._

_I glanced over, watching the former taicho of the fifth division sit beside me. He didn't look at me for minutes, only stared up at the stars. His short cut blonde hair, moved crazily in the wind just like my own hair was doing at the moment. I looked back towards the stars, mentally cheering for myself when I found all sorts of different constellations. The wind finally stopped, my hair fell all around me like a halo. My bangs fell slightly infront of my eyes, but I didn't push them away. That's just how I was, too lazy to move my own hair out of my eyes._

_"Kaori, what're ya doin' out here again?" Shinji finally asked, my olive green eyes locked with his grey ones. I shrugged in response, looking back towards the stars._

_"Thinking." I said nonchalantly, I saw him nod out of the corner of my eye._

_"What's botherin' ya?" he asked..._


End file.
